West Ham Till I Die
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Release the Hounds - Time to Blood the Youngsters

West Ham’s season has fallen between a rock and a hard place: European qualification firmly out of reach; Premier League status all but secured; a season punctuated with fluctuating form; early exits from domestic cup competitions; goal difference spiralling into increasingly negative equity. Where does that leave us? 33 points, 12th place. Treading water in a mid-table mini-league of pragmatists, under achievers and also-rans.

The season is effectively over. Regardless of results in the remaining 9 games, the post mortem will dissect a challenging campaign. Heads will be scratched, fingers will be pointed, a new equilibrium will be sought: re-focus and soul searching might suffice; loyalty and continuity may well prevail; disruptive innovation could catalyse progress. The Board will agree, action and administer our short-term strategy, but commercial considerations are not high on this quarter’s agenda.

Our seasonal stagnation presents a unique opportunity: to blood promising youngsters into the senior set-up, matchday squad and, ultimately, starting XI. I am not advocating a Forest Away ‘release the hounds’ Allardyce-inspired bloodbath which hangs our finest prospects out to dry, rather a calculated, considered and incremental introduction to First Team affairs. Line-ups, formations and tactics until the season-end should blend PL experience with the enthusiasm, fearlessness, hunger and infectiousness of youth. A sure-fire combination guaranteed to intrigue, inspire and innovate.

Youth players develop at different speeds; some lack mental fortitude, others are injury-prone, frontrunners are fast-tracked and tantalising talents are sent on loan. Premier League clubs utilise the loan market to accelerate assets and engender real-world experience and a competitive ‘edge’ amongst personnel. Loans are frequently agreed for fixed-terms with no recall rights for parent clubs. Acquiring clubs part with little to no Capex, assume negligible commercial risk and play these kids entirely at their discretion. This allows said clubs to have their cake and eat it, something both the Board and Manager should guard against in future.

Reece Oxford is a prime example; an apprenticeship under Jaap Stam seemed a match made in heaven but, in hindsight, he’s been left in limbo and would be best served at Rush Green during the business end to the season. The likes of Oxford, Burke, Byram, Fernandes, Cullen, Samuelsen, Quina and Martinez are the future of our great Club. Each one, when appraised individually, has fantastic attributes and a certain West Ham Way about them. Such natural talents must be harnessed and harvested. The players need to feel comfortable in their climate, competent and composed in competitive action. They need opportunities, free from the microcosm of social media sensationalism, to garner professional maturity and experience during matches. Young players will make mistakes, but they will learn too. Enveloped exposure to success and adversity in equal measure will set these players on an upward trajectory of exponential development. The analysis is academic; an opportunity has been missed.

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