According to Sky Sports pundit Kevin Campbell, having Kurt Zouma fully fit again is ‘massive’ ahead of West Ham’s upcoming Europa League semi-final second leg clash against Eintracht Frankfurt on Thursday night.
The Lowdown: Zouma back in contention
The Frenchman recently returned to action following a spell on the sidelines after sustaining an ankle injury in the Irons’ 2-0 Premier League defeat to Brentford in April.
The 27-year-old was named in David Moyes’ starting XI to face Arsenal last weekend in place of the suspended Craig Dawson, and whilst it may have been a risk for the manager to play Zouma against the Gunners given the dearth of available centre-back options, the duo are likely to partner each other at the back in Germany later this week.
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The Latest: European priorities
In a recent interview, Campbell told Football Insider’s Dylan Childs: “They badly needed a centre-half. Even if Kurt Zouma was only fit to play an hour it’s massive.
“Of course, if he got injured the question would be to Moyes, ‘Why did you risk him?’ The Europa League semi-finals are the priority.
“I was hoping David Moyes would get a game! I was hoping he’d sign up for one game.
“Listen, these things happen at this stage of the season. West Ham have to prioritise the semi-final. It is an amazing achievement already but they will want to get to that final.
“It is unfortunate that the injuries have come at the time they have but at least Zouma is back now.”
The Verdict: Huge boost for West Ham
The 11-cap France international has been an absolute colossus at the back for the Hammers this season, winning 2.4 of his aerial duels per game on average across all competitions, showing his physical strength. He has also demonstrated a calmness to play out from the back, with a pass success rate of 87.7%, as per WhoScored.
Dubbed an “eye-catching” player by his former Chelsea manager Frank Lampard, the recent return of Zouma will come as a huge boost to Moyes, especially given the fact that Issa Diop and Angelo Ogbonna might both be out for the rest of the season through injury.
West Ham will need all of the defensive experience available to them when they face Eintracht Frankfurt with a need to overturn a 2-1 deficit, and having someone like the £100k-per-week Frenchman in the side could prove to be the deciding factor when it comes to turning the tie around and making it to the final.
In other news… a journalist has dropped some big injury news ahead of the Irons’ Europa League clash