Nuno Espirito Santo made no reference to Airidas Golambeckis during his pre-match press conference on Friday, West Ham United preparing to welcome West Brom to the London Stadium.

What the head coach did say, however, is that Konstantinos Mavropanos is not the only defensive injury concern less than 24 hours out from tomorrow’s 3pm kick-off.

Nuno did not confirm the extent or the seriousness of Joel Veltman’s newest injury. But, while captain Jarrod Bowen ‘seems OK’ following an ankle issue he suffered in training, Veltman appears touch-and-go at best.

“We have some doubts, some players who are still in contention who need evaluating. There is a situation with Dinos, Joel and Keiber [Lamadrid],” Nuno said on Friday lunchtime. “It’s Dinos’ knee. We were concerned about the injury, but thankfully it’s not as serious as we thought. Let’s see. Dinos is a very important player for us.

“Jarrod twisted his ankle in training, but he’s been with us today and he seems OK.”

But what does all this mean for Airidas Golambeckis? Well, if the teenager was hoping to step in and replace Mavropanos – like he did to great effect at Watford two months ago – the potential absence of Veltman could rubber-stamp Golambeckis’ place on the team sheet.

Airidas Golambeckis will surely start for West Ham United against West Brom

As a general rule, Nuno tends to avoid starting two left-footers together at centre-half, as evidenced during spells in charge of Wolves, Nottingham Forest and Porto.

Romain Saiss was one of the first names in his XI at Molineux, while Murillo was the first pick alongside right-footer Nikola Milenkovic at Forest. Nuno took the same approach at FC Porto, starting Felipe alongside southpaw Ivan Marcano.

This is because Nuno, like many coaches, prefers a combination of a right-footer and a left-footer. The reason being that this creates a natural balance and opens up greater passing lanes. Because Nuno has prioritised making West Ham a better possession team this season, centre-backs who can play forward are even more important.

So do not be surprised if Nuno has reservations about partnering two left-sided centre-backs in Max Kilman and Morato. Golambeckis is the only right-footed, ‘proper’ centre-back in West Ham’s squad outside of Mavropanos.

Of course, the versatile Veltman has played in the middle over 200 times in his career, per Transfermarkt. But the 34-year-old’s potential absence makes it even more likely that Golambeckis will start a Championship match for only the second time.

Nuno Espirito Santo has been full of praise for talented Golambeckis

Nuno lauded an ‘amazing’ Golambeckis performance after that 1-1 draw with Watford at Vicarage Road. The England Under-20 international also impressed in the 4-1 Carabao Cup draw at Southampton.

That was his full debut. You wouldn’t have guessed it. Bowen could be seen applauding Golambeckis’ ambition on the ball that night; the 19-year-old is blessed not only with great defensive instincts but a lovely range of passing.

Despite only playing 122 minutes of Championship football – his other appearance came as a substitute in the 6-0 win at Lincoln – Golambeckis’ pass completion average of 96.8 per cent is among the best in the entire division [FotMob]. West Ham have also conceded only once during his time on the pitch in league action.

In short, a lack of experience aside, Golambeckis has a significant advantage over Morato due to his natural right-footedness. Putting the leggy teenager in Mavropanos’ spot would allow Kilman and Morato to start in their usual roles, with Kyle Walker-Peters keeping his place right-back.

“All the young players who have joined us, the [example] is what happened with Airidas. He stepped in and did amazing,” Nuno said in September. “Amazing. He didn’t put a foot wrong.

“This is what we expect from our young lads, to support us. But we have to trust them and give them time to improve.”

This weekend, with Mavropanos out and Veltman potentially on the sidelines too, feels like the opportune moment for Nuno’s ‘trust’ to pay off.