West Ham defender James Collins has suffered an injury setback after making a return to action this week. The Hammers’ star injured his ankle in September and as he returned to training last week, he picked up a hamstring injury.

Collins was named in the starting line-up against Wycombe Wanderers in the Under-23 Checkatrade Trophy. After 24 minutes, he had to be pulled out after straining his hamstring. The substitution was more of a precaution and he could return in the following days. Terry Westley’s team lost the game 2-0 though.

The setback will be serious bad news for David Moyes, who was expecting to have more options for the forthcoming games. Jose Fonte is sidelined until the New Year and with West Ham eager to win games, Collins would have been a big help in defence.

Michail Antonio has travelled with the team to face Everton FC but the forward is not expected to play. He is getting close to a return to full fitness so Moyes should be happy with that. With Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez and Andy Carroll on the bench, the former Everton boss has some options.

West Ham are yet to fully recover after several signings could not make their contributions following a wave of injury crisis. They struggled under Slaven Bilic last term and when they could not pick up this term, Moyes was drafted in to oversee the club until the end of the season. They face a difficult task ahead especially as the team confidence has taken a hit. However, if their top players are fit, they can finish in a comfortable spot at the end of the season.