‘That’s what West Ham is about’ – Hammers hero Anton Ferdinand urges Moyes to turn to the academy stars for league games
WEST HAM hero Anton Ferdinand has called on boss David Moyes to give youth a chance in the Hammers’ final four Premier League games. The Londoners are currently seventh in the league with games against Arsenal, Norwich, Manchester City and Brighton still to play. But Moyes‘ men are fully focussed on their Europa League campaign […]
WEST HAM hero Anton Ferdinand has called on boss David Moyes to give youth a chance in the Hammers’ final four Premier League games.
The Londoners are currently seventh in the league with games against Arsenal, Norwich, Manchester City and Brighton still to play.
But Moyes‘ men are fully focussed on their Europa League campaign with a spot in May’s final up for grabs.
However, West Ham are currently trailing Eintracht Frankfurt 2-1 heading into Thursday’s semi-final second leg.
Rotation will be key if the Hammers are to pull off a historic win in Germany.
West Ham have been plagued with injuries in their backline.
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Angelo Ogbonna, Kurt Zouma and Issa Diop all having spells on the sidelines.
And in last weekend’s narrow 1-0 London Derby loss to Chelsea, fan favourite Craig Dawson saw red for a challenge on Romelu Lukaku, potentially leaving Moyes with just Zouma as his only out-and-out centre-back for Sunday’s clash with Arsenal.
Ferdinand, who rose through the ranks at West Ham, wants to see Moyes turn to some of their youth stars for the rest of their Prem campaign to protect first-team players ahead of a potential European final.
One of those being talked about is U23s captain Aji Alese, who impressed in the narrow 1-0 Europa League group stage loss to Dinamo Zagreb, when the “Academy of Football” was on full display.
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The 21-year-old centre-back marshalled an inexperienced defence on a night which saw SEVEN academy stars feature.
On Alese being handed a chance in the top flight, Ferdinand exclusively told SunSport: “Being a West Ham fan and someone who came through the ranks as a player, I’d like to see a manager put faith in him.
“Will it be hard for him? 100 per cent it will.
“But one thing you do have in West Ham fans is; when it’s somebody who comes through the ranks, they get their full backing and I know that first hand myself.”
Ferdinand has pointed towards right-back Ben Johnson as to why Moyes should trust in West Ham’s academy stars more.
Johnson has played 31 times for the Hammers this term and at times has been preferred to Czech bargain Vladimir Coufal.
Ferdinand continued: “Fourth spot is out of reach for us. If I was Moyes – and who am I to say – but if I was Moyes, youngsters like Alese I’d play.
“People who are knocking on the door, we could potentially need them.
“It’s not just him, there’s others that could play. Jamal Baptiste is another fantastic centre-back. I’d give them a go, that’s what West Ham is about.
“The last four games, as a West Ham fan and someone who came through the ranks, I’d like to see a few more young players get the opportunity.
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“Look at Ben Johnson. He has been a pillar this year. He has been fantastic, to the point where [Vladimir] Coufal came back and he kept him out of the team.
“I know we’ve got more of them in the youth system. It’s West Ham United and that’s what we do; we produce.”