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Julen Lopetegui reveals West Ham team news for Aston Villa opener
Julen Lopetegui has acknowledged that West Ham United might not be able to feature all of their new signings in their opening match against Aston Villa due to varying levels of pre-season preparation and fitness.
West Ham has been highly active in the summer transfer window, significantly strengthening their squad with several new additions. Jean-Clair Todibo, Maximilian Kilman, and Aaron Wan-Bissaka have bolstered the defense, while Guido Rodriguez, Crysencio Summerville, Luis Guilherme, and Niclas Fullkrug have enhanced the options in midfield and attack. Wes Foderingham has also been brought in as an additional goalkeeper.
Despite these new signings likely becoming regulars, Lopetegui emphasized that caution will be exercised in integrating them into the team for the opener against Aston Villa. “Fortunately, we don’t have any bad news about injuries at the moment,” Lopetegui said. “We need to consider the preparation levels of players who joined us later.”
He continued, “We will have more information tomorrow. Right now, that’s all we know about the injuries. We are trying to wait until then and make a last-minute decision on the lineup.”
Lopetegui noted that some new signings might be more prepared than others. “We will see which of the new signings are ready. Others might need a bit more time,” he said.
Regarding Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Lopetegui mentioned, “He has played enough minutes in pre-season with Manchester United, but his first day with us was yesterday. We need to check them all tomorrow.”
West Ham’s match against Aston Villa, which is the late game on Saturday, will mark the beginning of a campaign that sees Villa competing in the Champions League following an impressive 2023/24 season under Unai Emery.