West Ham United U21s 3-1 Borussia Mönchengladbach II
Premier League International Cup Group B Chigwell Construction Stadium, Tuesday 10 December 2024, 7pm GMT
West Ham United U21s delivered an inspired second-half performance to overturn a first-half deficit and secure a 3-1 victory over Borussia Mönchengladbach II in their final Premier League International Cup group game at Chigwell Construction Stadium.
Goals from Lewis Orford, Luizão, and Kamarai Swyer sealed the Hammers’ first win since September, keeping their very slim qualification hopes alive.
The visitors began the match brightly, with plenty of attacking intent from the outset. Noah Pesch and Shio Fukuda combined dangerously in the opening exchanges, while Fritz Fleck tested Fin Herrick with a speculative long-range effort. West Ham responded well; Junior Robinson coming close in the eighth minute after a clever ball from Orford, only for goalkeeper Tiago Pereira Cardoso to make a slightly awkward save to keep it goalless.
As both teams exchanged blows in a fast-paced first half, Mönchengladbach grew into the game. Their breakthrough came in the 26th minute when Jonathan Foss' excellent ball over the top found Fleck. The winger weaved past Luizão and Kaelan Casey before firing into the far corner to give the visitors a deserved lead.
Despite their recent struggles, the young Hammers did not let their heads drop. Ryan Battrum nearly equalised just four minutes later, meeting Ollie Scarles’ pinpoint cross with a towering header that went over the bar. Despite their persistence though, West Ham went into the break trailing 1-0.
Mark Robson's side emerged from the tunnel reinvigorated, making two attacking substitutions that paid immediate dividends. Just four minutes into the second half, West Ham leveled through Lewis Orford. Pressing high, the Hammers forced a turnover, and after clever interplay between Battrum and Sean Tarima, Swyer then flicked Tarima’s into the path of Orford who slotted a composed left-footed finish into the bottom corner.
The goal ignited West Ham's confidence, with Emeka Adiele and Swyer both going close to putting the home side ahead. At the other end, Casey made a crucial tackle to deny Pesch, as Mönchengladbach continued to threaten on the counter.
West Ham’s persistence paid off in the 74th minute. Yet another excellent Orford corner delivery was met by Luizão, whose towering header found the far corner to complete the turnaround.
Mönchengladbach pushed for an equaliser, but West Ham’s defence held firm, with Herrick making a smart save to deny substitute Tony Reitz in added time. Deep into stoppage time, the Hammers struck again to put the result beyond doubt. Favour Fawunmi’s effort, saved by Pereira Cardoso, kindly fell to Swyer, who volleyed home emphatically to cap a commanding second-half display.
The win lifts West Ham into provisional qualification contention in the Premier League International Cup, although their fate depends on the remaining four games elsewhere all finishing in draws.
For Robson's young side, tonight’s comeback will serve as a much-needed confidence boost, having lost their previous seven games, as they look to build on this momentum against Stoke City on Friday and Sutton United next Tuesday.
West Ham United U21s: Herrick, Tarima (Fawumni 81), Casey ©, Luizão, Robinson, Orford, Akpata (Mayers HT), Battrum, Moore (Adiele HT), Swyer
Subs not used: Terry (GK), Brown, Rigge, Dolaghan
Goals: Orford 49, Luizão 75, Swyer 90+5
Booked: Orford, Swyer
Borussia Mönchengladbach II: Pereira Cardoso, Berko, Vali Fard (Dasbach HT), Foss (Reitz 69), Chiarodia, Borges Sanches (Herrmann 32), Stange ©, Swider, Fleck (Vidic 79), Fukuda (Boteli 69)
Subs not used: Dimmer (GK), Wörsdörfer
Goal: Fleck 26
Booked: Berko, Foss, Chiarodia, Pesch, Vidic
Premier League International Cup - Group B
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Olympique Lyonnais | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| 2 | West Ham United | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| 3 | Blackburn Rovers | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Sunderland | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | -1 | 4 |
| 5 | Middlesbrough | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 6 | Borussia Mönchengladbach | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -2 | 3 |
| 7 | Athletic Club | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 8 | Benfica | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Robson: We were far more ruthless tonight
After a series of tough results that hasn’t always reflected the effort and quality of their performances, West Ham United U21s finally got back to winning ways with a 3-1 comeback victory over their German rivals. Reflecting on his young Hammers’ performance, lead coach Mark Robson praised his side's ruthlessness and aggression in the way they approached the second half.
“I thought they [Mönchengladbach] started off really well. They were controlling the game so we had to change it. We changed from a three-at-the-back to a four. That helped us grow into the game toward the end of the first half.
"At half-time, we spoke about needing to be more aggressive. Sometimes, it’s not about playing pretty football; you have to be ruthless in your approach. And I have to say, in the second half, the boys were absolutely excellent—outstanding in every department, both in and out of possession. It wasn’t always pretty, but that’s football. Sometimes you have to fight, and tonight we did that and got the result we deserved.”
After two games without a goal, Robson and his staff sought to inspire the players by reminding them of their finishing capabilities ahead of tonight’s game.
“We showed the boys a presentation before the game—clips of the goals we’d scored earlier in the season. There were some brilliant finishes, goals from corners, free-kicks, counterattacks… We’re doing everything right except our finishing. Over the last six or seven games, barring one, we could have come away with wins. Tonight, I was really pleased with the finishing. We were far more ruthless, and it paid off.
“The win tonight puts us back on that winning trail, and the confidence we can take from the performance is huge. The aggression we showed, the fight, that’s what we need to bring into every game. At the end of the day, it’s about sticking your chest out and giving it a right go.
“The boys who came on in the second half made a really big difference and helped us find our way. The second-half performance was exactly what we needed, and it’s something to build on moving forward.”
Orford: Hopefully we can get two more wins and take that momentum into next year
West Ham United U21s vice-captain Lewis Orford played a pivotal role in the development side’s first win in eight games, spearheading the second-half turnaround with his first goal of the season, before setting up Luizão from a set-piece to complete the comeback.
“This result is great for the group," he said. "We’ve got two more games left this calendar year, and hopefully, we can get two more wins and take that momentum into next year.”
Commenting on the goals, he continued: "I knew Seanie [Tarima] was going to intercept that ball, so it was all about arriving in the box at the right time. Then Kam [Swyer] flicked it on, and I took a good touch, looked up, and put it in the bottom corner with my left foot.
“We’ve been working a lot on corners in training this week. It’s something we know we need to improve on because they’re huge opportunities to win games. We also went through it again before kick-off, so it was great to see it pay off. Luizão was in the right place at the right time, and it was a brilliant header.”