The Academy of Football is a statement that West Ham supporters are very proud to have attached to our club. I’m old enough to remember the glory days of the Academy where the England national team was full of players who had their formative years at our esteemed academy. It’s fair to say that there was a period where we dominated the England international scene.
The names of Frank Lampard Jnr, Rio Ferdinand, Joe Cole, Michael Carrick and Jermaine Defoe to name but five all came to national attention. Then of course we have our latest graduate, Declan Rice, now reaching near world class standards. There have been players over the years though who we all thought could set the league alight but sadly fell short. Who cannot forget the debut of Reece Oxford, a wonderful game against Arsenal was sadly a false dawn. And what of Freddie Sears, a goal scorer on his debut and in his second appearance almost scoring the winner at Everton before a career decline.
There have also been players we criticised the board for releasing too soon, the names Ben Johnson, Jeremy Ngakia, Grady Diangana and more recently Divin Mubama all come to mind. But none of those have yet to set the football world alight.
Moving Beyond the Moyes Era
David Moyes during his two stints as our manager, never seemed that keen to play our young academy players in the first team. Did this stifle our youngsters’ development? It’s clear that to make the jump up from the academy to the first team is a major step. The demand for instant success is one that can make the promotion of an untried youngster into the Premier League a risk too far for many managers.
Well certainly cream came to the top with Declan but we have moved on from Moyes and we have had two managers since that time. So what of this year and possibly next? With the transfer kitty rumoured to not be looking very healthy, is it time to plunder the academy again to find those players that can make a difference? For all his faults, and there were many, Julen Lopetegui did look closely at our academy promoting both Ollie Scarles, Kaelan Casey, Lewis Orford and Ezra Mayers into the first team.
The Potter Philosophy on Youth
With Graham Potter now in charge Scarles has become a regular fixture. Add to that mix Luis Guilherme and the future could look bright. It was good to see that Potter has emphasised the importance of youth development and sees the integrating academy players into the first team as of great importance. He has made it clear that he believes in looking at the club’s academy first when identifying players and building the team.
Furthermore he had gone on record that he views the Academy as a crucial part of the club’s identity and a source of potential talent. He is also pretty savvy and with the song, ‘Ollie Scarles he’s one of our own’ ringing from the stands that incorporating youth players into the first team is a way to win over fans and build trust between the supporters and the team. It’s obvious from recent team selections that Potter sees Ollie Scarles as the cream of the crop but he has also mentioned several other youngsters that could make the step upwards next season.
The Next Generation: Ones to Watch
Players like Kaelan Casey, George Earthy, Freddie Potts, Callum Marshall and Lewis Orford are mentioned as potential first team squad regulars. It is rare for so many though to make that massive step. Looking at those players mentioned, some have gone on loan this season while others remain at the Academy.
Looking at the players still wearing the claret and blue the first mentioned, Kaelan Casey, has made a first team appearance and is now a regular in the England U20 set up and at just 20 years of age, could be one to look closely at next season. The same can be said for Lewis Orford who made his debut in January against Crystal Palace and was the winning captain of the England U18 team. Orford has drawn comparisons to a young Frank Lampard Jnr and Declan Rice, pretty good company. Could he be our next midfielder to make a difference?
Success on Loan: Potts, Marshall, and Earthy
Out on loan this season we have several youngsters but three for me that really stand are the ones mentioned by Potter in Freddie Potts, Callum Marshall and George Earthy. Freddie Potts is currently on loan to Portsmouth. This is his second loan spell having played last season for Wycombe Wanderers. He now has almost 70 league appearances in firstly League One and now in the Championship under his belt. It will be interesting to see what happens to Freddie. Has he done enough to warrant a return to the claret and blue or will he spend another season on loan? It’s a big summer for Freddie.
As for Calum Marshall, could he be the Academy graduate striker we all desire? Well he has certainly managed to find the net at Huddersfield where he has scored seven goals in 22 appearances, not a bad return for a 20 year old in what is a physical league. He is also now part of the Northern Ireland national team having made eight appearances, and I have a feeling we will be seeing more of Calum in the near future.
That leaves George Earthy as the other young player I see that can make the grade. Earthy didn’t exactly have a dream first team debut at West Ham. Looking good in his substitute appearance, he then was knocked unconscious and stretchered off. He is now at Bristol City having made, at the time of writing, eight appearances with three goals, pretty impressive and again one to look out for next season.
A Bright Future Amidst Pressure
Do we put too much pressure on our younger players? I think we do as can be seen by our demand to see academy players in the team. It is also a great deal tougher to make the step up to the Premier League now than ever before. The demand for success is huge. But with an ever changing world and the Trump induced recession on the horizon, it could be the right time to plunder once more our Academy.
West Ham have an advantage here as we have always invested in youth. Time will tell if this investment will bear fruit but right now, the future looks bright for our Academy players.
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