West Ham United U23s are back in Premier League 2 action on Monday evening, kicking off 2021/22 with the high-profile occasion of a London derby and the first competitive match at London Stadium this season.
By a quirk of fixture scheduling, the young Hammers will face – for a third PL2 Division 1 game in a row – Arsenal U23s, who are sure to prove stern, but exciting, opposition for a season-opening match.
The occasion also offers the opportunity for West Ham supporters to attend a home development squad match for the first time in almost 18 months. The last time the young Hammers played in front of a crowd was a 4-0 win over Norwich City in March 2020!
With home games at Rush Green currently scheduled to be played behind-closed-doors until further notice, this is an excellent opportunity to get down to the ground and show your support in person for the future starlets at the Academy of Football.
Tickets are free for Season Ticket Holders and Claret Members. For non-members, tickets are priced at £5 for Adults and £3 for Concessions/Under-16s. Click here to book or click here for further information.
With that in mind, here’s everything you need to know about Monday night’s game, which kicks off at 7pm…
The story so far
West Ham United U23s can approach the fresh season with a healthy degree of optimism after some particularly impressive performances in pre-season of late.
Lead coach Dmitri Halajko’s team won four out of seven games, including 3-0 and 2-1 wins over fellow academy teams Birmingham City U23s and Millwall U23s in the last ten days, and scored 18 goals in the process.
They’ll be looking to take such form into the new Premier League 2 Division 1 season, having picked up impressive momentum and results in the closing weeks of the last campaign to seal their place in the top-flight.
Having been bottom of the table as recently as mid-March, West Ham’s U23s rallied from a difficult start to 2020/21 to earn 15 points out of a possible last 24 in the league and propel themselves up two places, with Leicester City U23s’ final-day loss to Liverpool U23s securing an eleventh-placed finish for West Ham and, with it, safety.
The season was the young Hammers’ first in the top tier of Premier League 2, having won Division 2 with an unbeaten record in 2019/20.
While the step up was initially reflected in the U23s’ results – albeit not by their performances, which did warrant greater reward but suffered for a lack of efficiency in front of goal – the experience will have benefitted them for the season ahead.
Now, Halajko’s team will look to get the season off to the best possible opening – and with the stage set at London Stadium on Monday evening, the platform is there for them to start as they mean to go on.
Last time out…
You don’t have to think back too far for the last time West Ham and Arsenal met at development football level – the final two games of last season, in fact!
The Hammers went into those two games knowing that two wins would actually see them overtake the Gunners and climb up to tenth; conversely, Arsenal knew that two losses would put them in danger of being relegated.
West Ham were dominant in the first game, an away trip to Meadow Park in early May in which three penalties settled a game which should have been determined long beforehand – Conor Coventry and Mipo Odubeko for the Irons, Nikolaj Moller equalising from the spot for the home team.
Six days later, the two teams met again with all to play for, and a more even encounter ensued. A quiet first half gave way to an enthralling second, West Ham taking the lead early through Odubeko’s header and missing chances to add a second, only for Arsenal to equalise through another Moller penalty.
The Irons rallied and thought they’d snatched it at the death when Pierre Ekwah – then a trialist – volleyed in a cross with three minutes to go, but Arsenal equalised once again in the second minute of injury time with a scrambled finish from a set-piece.
That result left West Ham nervously awaiting their fate but, thankfully, Liverpool played their part in our survival three days later.
The opposition
London Stadium may hold happy memories for followers of Arsenal’s U23s, however, after a victory in Stratford saw them secure the Premier League 2 title in 2018.
Since May’s two end-of-season encounters, the junior Gunners have appointed a new development squad head coach after Steve Bould’s 33-year association with the club came to an end.
Former England U16s, U17s and U18s coach Kevin Betsy – who was also previously a midfielder for Fulham, Barnsley and Bristol City among other clubs – was appointed Arsenal’s U23s boss as recently as Tuesday 3 August.
In keeping with their track record of bringing young players through, Arsenal’s U23s could boast the likes of centre-back Omar Rekik – a senior Tunisia international – and 18-year-old midfielder Miguel Azeez, who impressed in last season’s FA Youth Cup fifth round victory over West Ham and who scored for the first team in a recent pre-season win over Watford.
Goalscorer Folarin Balogun is always a threat up front, hitting ten goals in 21 development squad games last season – as well as two in five in the Europa League. The American-born forward signed a new four-year contract at Arsenal earlier this year.
What they’re saying
West Ham United U23s lead coach Dmitri Halajko: “The lads looking forward to it. The fact that it’s at London Stadium makes a huge difference.
“It’s a massive game anyway. It’s our first game this season, and against a team like Arsenal – a London derby – it’s a big game.
“Being at the Stadium puts another layer on top of that, so the lads can’t wait. It’s been a long pre-season so they’ll be raring to go.
“Arsenal have got a new head coach, Kevin Betsy, so a few things could have changed since the last time we played them, but you know against Arsenal they’re always going to have quick players, they’re always going to play technical football and try and dominate the ball.
"I expect it to be a really good football match.”
How can I attend?
Tickets for the game at London Stadium are free for Season Ticket Holders and Claret Members. For non-members, tickets are priced at £5 for Adults and £3 for Concessions/Under-16s. Click here to book or click here for further information.
If you're unable to attend on the night, whufc.com will be hosting a live blog, as well as reaction and highlights, and you can follow @WestHam on Twitter.
