Bowen and Antonio missing for West Ham in Serbia

Published on: 29 November 2023

Jarrod Bowen was injured while on duty with England

West Ham are missing forwards Jarrod Bowen and Michail Antonio with knee injuries suffered during the international break for their Europa League trip to Backa Topola.

Their absence means boss David Moyes may need to start teenage striker Divin Mubama in Serbia.

The Hammers will seal their place in the knockout stages if they win.

"Jarrod hasn't travelled and we've got another couple who have some illness," said Moyes.

West Ham and Freiburg - who they meet in the final game - are level on nine points at the top of Group A. The winner of the group reaches the last 16, with the runner-up going into a play-off round against third-place finishers in the Champions League group stage.

"We've enjoyed our journey in Europe over the last few years. We continue to enjoy it now. We come to another new city," said Moyes.

"When we first got into Europe, we wanted the supporters to enjoy their trips, enjoy going away, behave well and hopefully see their team do well.

"Hopefully they would all stand back and say we've had a couple of really good years in Europe."

Source: bbc.com