West Ham defender Issa Diop has said that he is looking forward to the physical battle with Aleksandar Mitrovic when they face Fulham on Friday night.
Diop has enjoyed an impressive debut season in the Premier League since making the £22 million move from Toulouse in the summer, starting 24 of the Hammers 26 league games.
The French defender is expected to be in the starting line-up when West Ham take on Fulham at the London Stadium on Friday night, where he will likely come up against Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic, who has scored 10 goals for the struggling Cottagers.
Speaking ahead of the game, Diop has insisted that he is looking forward to playing against the Serbian striker.
“Mitrovic is a big player,” Diop told West Ham’s website. “He’s a big, powerful striker, very strong and very good in aerial situations, so we need to be careful.
“I will work out how I can mark him on Friday night. I enjoy those physical battles with the strikers and not many will be as physical as Mitrovic. He uses his body really well, so I have to figure out how to get into good positions to stop him.”
West Ham go into the game in 10th in the league on 33 points, while Fulham are firmly embroiled in a relegation battle having picked up just 17 points from their 26 fixtures to date, and are eight points from safety.