Journalist Paul Brown is expecting West Ham to sign a centre-back in January after their recent injury problems.
David Moyes has lost first-choice pairing Angelo Ogbonna and Kurt Zouma recently, which has left him with just two fit central defenders heading into the festive period.
What happened to Ogbonna and Zouma?
West Ham are enjoying another brilliant season under Moyes, but the Hammers boss has been dealt two major blows in the space of four weeks.
Firstly, Ogbonna suffered a serious knee injury against Liverpool, which is likely to keep him out for the remainder of the campaign, according to Moyes.
West Ham collected just one point from their next three league games following Ogbonna's injury before returning to winning ways against Chelsea on Saturday.
However, Moyes was handed another huge setback when former Blues defender Zouma hobbled off with 19 minutes remaining of the 3-2 win and was replaced by Pablo Fornals.
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Zouma underwent a scan on the issue on Monday and West Ham confirmed 24 hours later that the Frenchman has sustained a hamstring tendon injury.
The Hammers didn't provide a return date, but according to the Guardian, he could be sidelined for around 12 weeks, which could see him miss up to 20 games in all competitions.
It leaves Moyes with just Craig Dawson and Issa Diop heading into the crucial Christmas and New Year period.
Therefore, Brown expects the Scotsman to add a centre-back to his squad once the window opens in three weeks' time.
What did Brown say about West Ham's centre-back situation?
He told GIVEMESPORT: "I'd be surprised if they didn't bring a centre-back in. They clearly need one and have needed one for a while."
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Do West Ham need any other signings?
Despite a shortage of centre-backs, it shouldn't take away West Ham's need for another striker.
Moyes' side became the first team to score three goals against Chelsea this season, but they had scored just twice in their three Premier League games before that.
Michail Antonio has gone off the boil in front of goal having scored twice in 12 games, compared to four in his first three outings this season.
Therefore, signing another frontman needs to be just behind a centre-back in Moyes' shopping list, if West Ham want to continue competing on all four fronts in the second half of the campaign.