West Ham United’s loanee Yossi Benayoun has suffered an injury set back - sending him back to Chelsea - after breaking down in training before Sunday’s loss to Liverpool in the Premier League.

The Israeli has been ruled out for the Irons’ visit to the Hawthorns, meaning he will miss his fifth game in succession after being sent back to West London for further assessment and recovery. In these five games the Hammers claimed only one win, compared a stretch of four games previously where Benayoun featured to help the team to two wins, one loss and one draw.

“Our big problem with Yossi at the moment is to try and get him fit," Allardyce said.

"He broke down in training last week after we thought that he would be okay. At the moment he’s back with Chelsea trying to recover from that injury."

When asked about the possibility of signing the Israeli to a long-term deal, the manager stated that Benayoun’s loan agreement contains a condition that West Ham must decide in January whether they plan on agreeing to a permanent move.

In light of the player’s current injury concerns – restricting him to six appearances this term – and with his return to Chelsea, the deal seems more uncertain than ever.