West Ham boost as Dimitri Payet closes in on return

West Ham have been handed an injury boost after Slaven Bilic revealed Dimitri Payet is set to make his first-team return against Liverpool on January 2.

Payet, who scored five goals in his impressive start to life in the Barclays Premier League, was expected to be out until February after he sustained an ankle injury following a tackle by James McCarthy in West Ham’s 1-1 draw at Everton last month.

But Bilic, speaking ahead of his side’s Boxing Day clash against Aston Villa, says the France international will return to training in the coming days, and could feature when Liverpool travel to Upton Park in the New Year.