Mark Noble is set to miss West Ham's trip to Old Trafford tomorrow night having accrued five bookings already this season.
The combatative United midfielder picked up his latest booking of the campaign at White Hart Lane on Sunday afternoon and therefore received an automatic one-match ban as a result.That is further bad news for Sam Allardyce who has already seen his small squad stretched to its limits by a string of recent injuries.
"We are very short on players at the moment," he admitted. "Mark Noble is missing through suspension and George McCartney will have a late fitness test, so our squad is being pushed to the limit.
"I think that when you are going into a week like this you always want everybody available but we have to go with what we have got and give a good account of ourselves.
"We need to play the best we can and see where that takes us, but like I have said before about Old Trafford, you can play your best and still come away on the losing side."
Speaking this morning, the West Ham boss also condemned the small group of fans who sullied the club's name at Tottenham by chanting anti-semitic abuse.
"Since the game it is very disappointing to have read about what has been said by and what has been done by a small minority of fans," he added. Nobody condones that sort of behaviour and there is a zero tolerance attitude within the club.
"Now I know what has gone on like everybody else, I do not condone it or wish to hear any of that kind of chanting in football - especially in this country."
Manchester United vs West Ham United kicks off at 8.00pm.
* Something to say about this story? Please visit the KUMB Forum to leave a comment.