West Ham United have received a welcome fitness update ahead of their Championship trip to Wrexham on Friday night, with manager Nuno Espirito Santo confirming that midfielder Tomas Soucek is making progress in his recovery from injury.
The 31-year-old Czech international has not featured for the Hammers this season after suffering a serious injury that saw him stretchered off during the Czech Republic's final World Cup qualifying group game against Mexico back in June. Soucek has now spent close to three months on the sidelines, but has returned to training and appears to be edging closer to full fitness.
Speaking to reporters, Nuno explained that Soucek is currently blending individual fitness work with elements of full team training as the club look to manage his return carefully. "He is getting better," the Portuguese coach said. "He is doing some parts of the sessions with the rest of the group already, but we're also trying to complement that with some individual fitness work, so that he's in the right place when he comes back."
Nuno was keen to stress that there is no rush to force Soucek back into action before he is fully ready. "Right now the priority is for him to get back to full fitness, and then we'll see when he is ready to play," he added.
Soucek's return would be a significant boost for a West Ham side that has endured a difficult start to life in the Championship following relegation from the Premier League last season. The east London club has seen several key players depart since going down, including Mateus Fernandes, Crysencio Summerville and Aaron Wan-Bissaka, leaving Nuno with a squad in transition as they attempt to mount a promotion push.
Soucek, one of the few remaining players from West Ham's Europa Conference League-winning squad of 2023, has been vocal about his commitment to the club during his time out. Taking to social media, he pledged his full support to the promotion campaign. "Since the season ended, I've only had one thing on my mind. West Ham United. This Club means so much to me, and I'm ready to do everything I can in helping get it back to where it belongs; to the English Premier League," he wrote. "For the immediate future, I'll support the boys off the pitch whilst I rehabilitate. Then once back, I'll give everything I have on the pitch, fighting alongside the boys once again."
Beyond Soucek's rehabilitation, Nuno also provided updates on a couple of other fitness concerns within his squad. Striker Taty Castellanos has been nursing a tendon problem and remains under close observation, while goalkeeper Alphonse Areola is being assessed following a dead leg issue. "It's been a tight schedule, and things to assess. We will do that, and then decide," Nuno said regarding Castellanos. "Taty is one of those we need to look at, among others. It was a tendon. He felt some pain there, but he's improving."
On Areola, the manager struck a similarly cautious but positive tone. "With Areola, it was a dead leg, but he is improving, and we are continuing to assess him day by day," Nuno noted.
With the squad continuing to be monitored on a daily basis, West Ham will hope that the gradual return of key figures like Soucek can help steady the ship as they look to bounce back from a slow start and push for an immediate return to the Premier League.
Based on reporting from Standard Sport.