West Ham United star Vladimir Coufal has confirmed the reason for his shock last minute absence against Brighton.
The West Ham team for the clash with Brighton has been named and there was an unwelcome surprise for fans.
As we reported earlier West Ham were expected to be without Lucas Paqueta and captain Kurt Zouma as well as AFCON duo Mohammed Kudus and Nayef Aguerd.
But there was further bad news for West Ham when one of their best players this season – Vladimir Coufal – was nowhere to be seen either.
Coufal confirms reason for his shock absence
Conspiracy theorists started pondering whether Coufal’s absence was linked to his reported anger at having not being handed improved terms and a longer contract at the London Stadium.
But West Ham star Coufal has confirmed the reason for his shock last minute absence against Brighton.
Taking to his Instagram Stories, Coufal said he is the latest victim of the flu in the Hammers squad.
And he sent a heartfelt message to West Ham’s fans and his teammates.
‘I am fighting flu instead of Brighton’
“I feel so sorry I can’t help boys on the pitch tonight,” Coufal said.
“Instead of opponents l am fighting with bad flu. I will miss your fantastic support tonight but as soon as I recover again I am ready to fight for club as long as I can till my last days.
“Come on you lrons, let’s go tonight.”
What a great character Vlad the lad really is. He was vital in the victory at Brighton earlier this season too.
Let’s all hope he recovers quickly. Because goodness knows West Ham need him.
Thilo Kehrer’s absence from the squad tallies with what we reported earlier – that he is on the verge of signing for Monaco according to claims from France.
Ben Johnson is therefore standing in for Coufal as West Ham face Brighton with a lot to play for in the race for the top six.
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