Everton have confirmed that Fabian Delph is an injury doubt ahead of Saturday’s meeting with West ham United. The 29-year-old has been struggling with a hamstring injury that caused him to pull out of the England squad during the international break.
With Jean-Philippe Gbamin now out of action for three months, Delph’s absence would be an added blow. Silva could be left with Andre Gomes, Morgan Schneiderlin and Tom Davies to choose from in midfield.
Everton say Delph will be assessed by Marco Silva and the medical staff before a decision is made. He failed to complete a full training session with the Toffees in the week, but Silva said in Friday’s press conference that there was a chance of Delph featuring as he was “getting better”.
He said: “About Fabian, we’re still in doubt. We have 24 hours until the game so let’s see how he’ll react. He did, not a full session with the team, but he’s getting better. It’s one decision we’ll make tomorrow.”
Delph has made seven appearances in all competitions since joining Everton from Manchester City over the summer, five of which have come in the Premier League. The box-to-box midfielder enjoyed victory on his league debut but has suffered defeat from the four games that followed.
Ahead of Saturday’s clash, Everton are currently 18th in the table with seven points from eight games. They can’t afford anything less than a win, but West Ham are no slouches – the Londoners are unbeaten on the road (four games, one win, three draws).