Song makes comeback as West Ham confirm lengthy absence for Payet

Barcelona loanee Alex Song played 70 minutes of West
Ham's friendly victory over Crystal Palace, while Dimitri
Payet is out until February.

Alex Song stepped up his recovery from an ankle injury by
playing in West Ham's 1-0 friendly win over Crystal Palace.

The on-loan Barcelona midfielder is yet to feature in his second
consecutive temporary spell with the Upton Park club as a result
of the long-term problem.

But the 28-year-old played 70 minutes in Wednesday's behind-
closed-doors game.

Meanwhile, West Ham have confirmed that attacking midfielder
Dimitri Payet will not play again until February as they wait to
learn the full extent of the ankle injury the former Marseille man
sustained during Saturday's 1-1 Premier League draw at
Everton.

"Dimitri had a scan on Sunday and we saw the specialist at a
central London hospital on Monday," said West Ham's head of
medical and sports science Stijn Vandenbroucke on the club's
official website.

"He is scheduled to see the specialist again next Monday and I
will be able to give more detail regarding Dimitri’s medical
condition following this second meeting, which will decide
whether or not he needs to undergo an operation.

"It is a fact that he will be out until February, whether he has an
operation or not."

Vandenbroucke added that Enner Valencia will have an ankle
injury of his own assessed next Monday, while fellow forward
Diafra Sakho is on course to face Tottenham after the
international break if he does not suffer any further setbacks
with a thigh problem.