It has been a particularly demanding pre-season for West Ham United’s U21s. The young Hammers have faced some tough challenges, including two matches against National League opposition and a behind-closed-doors friendly against Granada, who were only relegated from La Liga last term. These encounters have provided significant yet beneficial tests for the squad, offering valuable growth opportunities.
With their warm-weather training camp in Jerez de la Frontera well underway, the U21s have been benefiting from double sessions, gym and football in the mornings, followed by more work on the ball in the evenings. An intensive schedule designed to enhance fitness and readiness for the upcoming season, then.
Reflecting on the training camp, lead coach Mark Robson shared: “The trip has been really positive so far. Out on the training pitch, it’s been really good; we’ve had some very productive sessions. The days that we’ve been out here, they’ve worked extremely hard. It’s all about getting fit for the start of the season. We’ve also had a bit of fun in the evenings with team-building exercises, which has helped some of our younger members of the squad get out of their shells.”
With a sizeable portion of the U21s squad currently on West Ham United’s Sunshine State Tour in Florida with the first team, several U18s have stepped up to travel with the U21s, building relationships with their older teammates and gaining first-hand experience of the demands at the next level.
“Playing these senior teams has been tough,” Robson continued. “When you play these teams, you’re doing a lot of running throughout the game, chasing them, and you’ve got to be better on the ball. We’ve learnt some important lessons there.”
While the opportunity for players to travel with the first team is extremely positive, it does present challenges for the team. The matches have been big tests for the young players, requiring them to work even harder out of possession and be sharp in their decision-making on the ball. Mistakes against senior opposition are more costly and usually punished.
“Playing against men, physically, takes a lot more out of our boys,” Robson explained. “Trying to compete with them is really hard. It’s been a tough few games for the boys, but they’ll definitely learn from it and understand what it takes to get to the next level.”
Later this week, the U21s will be travelling to Real Betis’ sports complex in Seville to continue their preparations with a behind-closed-doors training game against the verdiblancos’ development side. Friday morning’s game will serve as another valuable step in their preparations for the new season.