Sources: West Ham have drastic plan as Fabianski & Martin update revealed

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Published on:

18 Dec 2019, 3:21 am

Lukasz Fabianski and David Martin are both in a race against time to be fit for the next West Ham match, Football Insider understands.

Number one Fabianski is working his way back to fitness after nearly three months on the sidelines with a hip injury while stand-in goalkeeper Martin suffered a groin strain in last Saturday's win against Southampton.

A West Ham source has told Football Insider that Manuel Pellegrini is planning to take the drastic option of playing one of the pair on Boxing Day even if they are not 100 per cent fit.

The manager is loathe to recall Roberto Jimenez to the starting XI after his dreadful seven-match Premier League run in the team.

Martin, 33, has replaced the Spaniard for the last four games and kept clean sheets in wins over Chelsea and Southampton.

But he broke down last weekend and is considered a major doubt for the Boxing Day trip to Crystal Palace.

Fabianski is on the comeback trail but needs to make progress in the next eight days to convince Pellegrini to recall him straight away to the starting line-up.

He has been sorely missed during his absence, which coincided with West Ham suffering a dramatic slump in results.

Pellegrini is still not out of the woods yet, despite overseeing two wins in the last four league fixtures.

As revealed by Football Insider on Sunday, the Hammers board are planning to review his position on a match-by-match basis.

In other West Ham news, it can be REVEALED that Daniel Levy is set to block Hammers pursuit of Tottenham big name.

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