Report: West Ham's Andy Carroll sidelined 4-6 weeks with knee injury
West Ham United's lanky striker Andy Carroll is set for another spell on the sidelines due to a troublesome knee injury, according to The Telegraph's Richard Amofa.
The latest setback is expected to incur a layoff of around four-to-six weeks.
The issue could be an aggravation of a knee concern that the 27-year-old played through in the season opener at Chelsea last weekend, and during the midweek matchup with Astra Giurgiu in the Europa League play-offs.
It marks a huge disappointment for Carroll, who was finally the beneficiary of a full preseason in Stratford. He was also apparently under consideration for new England manager Sam Allardyce's first squad for next month's 2018 World Cup qualifier against Slovakia.
Devastated about my recent injured but I'm still the 15-20 goal man! #COYI
— Andy Carroll (@AndyTCarroll) August 21, 2016
Carroll, formerly of boyhood club Newcastle United, has been repeatedly hampered by injury problems, but last season missed just five games to appear in 27 Premier League matches - his highest tally in five campaigns.
Carroll's injury adds to an already stacked absentee list at West Ham. Most notably, new signing Andre Ayew fell to a significant thigh problem in his debut last week that should sideline him for around four months.
The lacking options could encourage manager Slaven Bilic to delve into the transfer market, with an interest in Carlos Bacca of AC Milan potentially resurrected - despite the Colombian insisting he's staying in Italy - along with Manchester City's Wilfried Bony and Chelsea's Loic Remy reportedly sighted as ideal striking options.
Enner Valencia was selected to lead the line for Sunday's visit of Bournemouth, with loanee Jonathan Calleri named among the substitutes.