West Ham midfielder Josh Cullen has suffered a serious ankle injury.
Charlton Athletic manager Lee Bowyer has told The South London Press that loan star Cullen is out until after Christmas. The Hammers loanee has suffered damage to ligaments in his ankle, ruling him out for the next month at least.
Cullen had been a mainstay in Charlton’s team. Bowyer had given Cullen the full 90 minutes in every league match since he rejoined on loan from West Ham. But he was withdrawn early in the second half last Saturday as Charlton drew with Cardiff City.
Lee Bowyer on Josh Cullen
Charlton knew Cullen would be out of Tuesday night’s match against Luton Town, which ended in defeat. Cullen went for a scan on Tuesday and Bowyer revealed the results in his interview.
Bowyer told The South London Press: “Josh is going to be out a while, a fair while. Longer than Lyle, not the season, but he won’t be back before Christmas.He’s done his ligament, a few of them. It’s not good.”
Josh Cullen misses chance to impress West Ham
This is a shame for Cullen, who would have been hoping to catch the eye in the next five weeks. The 23-year-old has been in fine form for Charlton this season, operating in a central midfield role.
Meanwhile, West Ham have struggled all over the pitch and a new midfielder looks like one of the priorities in January. Cullen had the chance to show Manuel Pellegrini (or a new manager) why he deserves one more chance at The London Stadium.
But this now looks unlikely considering his ankle injury. Cullen will not play until after Christmas, leaving him with limited opportunities to impress West Ham and earn a recall.
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