West Ham boss David Moyes gives backing to Leeds United in Premier League fight amid high praise for Whites

The Whites sit 16th in the top flight standings, having seen worries over relegation creep in during the first half of the campaign amid an ongoing injury crisis.

A recent victory over Burnley, though, eased those fears somewhat as Marcelo Bielsa saw his outfit open up an eight-point gap to the bottom three.

Leeds have been hit by a number of absences this season - most notably Kalvin Phillips and Patrick Bamford - though have seen the club's injury list continue to grow.

Bielsa is hopeful of having Bamford back for a second trip to face the Hammers this weekend along with defender Pascal Struijk and fellow forward Rodrigo.

Club captain Liam Cooper remains out as does Phillips, Tyler Roberts, Joe Gelhardt, Jamie Shackleton and Charlie Cresswell.

Centre-back Diego Llorente is also suspended for the London Stadium meeting.

"I think Leeds will be fine. I expect them to have one or two players back by the time the game comes around," Moyes said ahead of Sunday afternoon's kick-off.

"They are a really good side, really hard to play against, and have shown that over the last couple of years.

"Everybody likes watching them and knows about their energy and how they play so that makes it really difficult to play against and we have had some really tough games against them over the last year or so."

Asked whether he was happy with his side's recent form after an FA Cup win over Leeds and midweek toppling of Norwich City, Moyes added: "I am really pleased with the way the players have performed certainly in the last few weeks.

"We are getting a bit closer to where we were at the beginning of the season, so long may that continue."