West Ham United U18s v Southampton U18s
U18 Premier League South, Little Heath Training Ground, Saturday 2 November 2024, 11.30am GMT
West Ham United U18s welcome their Southampton counterparts to Little Heath Sports Ground on Saturday morning.
There, the young Hammers will be seeking a third straight U18s Premier League South victory after scoring four goals each in wins at home to Tottenham Hotspur and away at Reading on the previous two weekends.
West Ham kick-off the weekend in sixth place in the 13-team table, two places and four points behind their opponents from Hampshire.
How To Follow…
After the final whistle, read a full match report and reaction on whufc.com, plus highlights of all the action from Little Heath Sports Ground.
Opposition…
Recognised as one of the leading Academies in the country, Southampton have, like West Ham United, become synonymous with producing outstanding young players.
Among those who have come through the ranks at the Saints’ Staplewood Training Ground in recent decades have been Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Luke Shaw, Adam Lallana and James Ward-Prowse, among many others.
Bale, Walcott and Lallana were involved when Southampton were FA Youth Cup runners-up in 2005. More recently, the Saints won the U18 Premier League South division title in 2021/22, before losing to Manchester City in the National final.
Southampton’s current U18 head coach is former Manchester City, Crystal Palace and Fulham coach Calum McFarlane, who is assisted by former Saints, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Norwich City and AFC Bournemouth midfielder Andrew Surman.
Ones to watch...
For West Ham United, versatile attacker Elisha Sowunmi is in superb form. The 17-year-old has six goals in seven U18s Premier League South games this season, including four in his previous two and a hat-trick in the 4-1 win at Reading last weekend. He also scored in the midweek U18 Premier League Cup draw at Everton.
Captain Preston Fearon has also been influential, registering nine assists in all competitions, including one in each of the Hammers’ previous three league matches, while 18-year-old forward Mehmet Halim hit the net twice at Everton on Tuesday.
For Southampton, 17-year-old attacker Nicholas Oyekunle has been the standout performer so far in 2024/25. With the Saints Academy since the age of six, the forward made his U21s debut last season and signed his first professional contract at the start of 2024. He has eight goals and two assists from his eight U18s Premier League South appearances so far this season.
Left winger Sufianu Sillah Dibaga will also provide a threat. The second-year scholar has three goals and three assists from his seven league appearances this term. The speedy Spanish youngster joined Southampton from Crystal Palace in the summer of 2023.
Story So Far…
Lauris Coggin’s free-scoring Irons have hit the net in each of the seven league matches they have played in 2024/25, including 12 in their previous four and 16 overall. However, the Hammers have also conceded in all seven games too, letting in 13 goals in total and meaning that, despite their scoring feats, they have registered two victories, three draws and two defeats to date.
The U18s also hit four first-half goals in an U18 Premier League Cup Group D tie at Everton on Tuesday, only to concede four times themselves to draw 4-4 at Finch Farm Training Ground. Prior to that, the young Hammers defeated Nottingham Forest 2-0 in their opening tie in August.
Next up is a home game with a Southampton team who have scored in all eight matches they have played, and won their two previous games, keeping their first clean sheet in a 3-0 victory at West Bromwich Albion a fortnight ago, before overcoming Chelsea 2-1 at home last time out.
Southampton have lost just once, 3-2 at home to Aston Villa at the end of August, and have three victories and four draws from their seven other fixtures.
The Saints have also contested two U18 Premier League Cup ties, losing 4-2 to Everton in August before defeating Nottingham Forest 6-2 at the start of October. West Ham will host Southampton in both clubs’ final Group D tie on Saturday 23 November.
