West Ham's main man may miss Blackburn
Outspoken West Ham co-owner David Sullivan is expected to be attendance for Saturday's crucial home game against Blackburn, having controversially ducked out of the trip to Manchester City, however there could be an even more high-profile absentee for the relegation battlers.
Top performer and Football Writers' Association Player of the Year Scott Parker had widely been expected to return after three games on the sidelines for his team's potentially decisive clash with fellow strugglers Rovers, who will almost certainly be safe if they triumph at the Boleyn Ground.
But the latest reports courtesy of ESPN's Harry Harris, who is believed to be a favoured journalist of Sullivan, are that Parker has suffered a setback in training in his attempts to recover from an Achilles injury said to have initially been aggravated when representing England against Wales in March.
A West Ham source is quoted as saying: "Scott Parker broke down in training on Tuesday. He has had injections which have a 50 per cent chance of working. He played a few games injured, but couldn't play anymore. The injury is not major, but he's in acute pain with his Achilles and really needs a break."
It has been suggested in some quarters that this could all be kidology on behalf of the Irons camp designed to lull Blackburn into a sense of false security, though Betfair punters clearly aren't convinced by that theory, as the price on Avram Grant's side winning has noticeably drifted.
Having at one stage traded at [1.83] to claim three vital points after a run of five successive defeats, the bottom club are now [2.04] to prevail, illustrating just how pivotal Parker is perceived to be. Also not helping matters is the expected absence of captain Matthew Upson and midfielder Mark Noble.
Is there no way back for West Ham? They are [1.39] to go down this year...
Published: 4 May 2011
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