Brighton & Hove Albion U21s v West Ham United U21s
Premier League 2, Amex Academy Performance Centre, Friday 16 August 2024, 7pm GMT
West Ham United’s U21s kickstart their campaign on Friday evening with a trip to the south coast to face Brighton & Hove Albion at the Amex Elite Performance Centre.
The Hammers’ Premier League 2 opener comes after a busy pre-season period which saw our development side play in three countries and face off against opposition from four different leagues.
Mark Robson returned to the role of Academy Under-21s Lead Coach in June and will take charge of the U21s in 2024/25, assisted by Hammers legend Steve Potts and Gerard Prenderville.
After finishing second in the table last season, the Irons will hope to continue their strong recent record at Premier League 2 level.
Tickets…
All of Brighton & Hove Albion’s development squad fixtures played at the training ground are available to their Season Ticket Holders only, so unfortunately West Ham United supporters are unable to attend in-person.
How To Follow…
A live blog will be available on the Club’s website and app from 6pm, while a match report and reaction will follow shortly after the full-time whistle. Highlights will follow on Saturday.
Premier League 2 Explained…
To minimise the impact of relegation on future groups of U21 players, the Premier League introduced a new format to its development phase competition in 2023/24.
Replacing the two-division system, the 26 Category One academies now compete in a single tier with 20 regular-season fixtures before the top 16 seeded teams advance to single-elimination play-offs.
Regular season fixtures are determined by a draw made according to clubs’ performances over the last three seasons. Each team plays 20 different opponents before the play-offs in May, where they will be drawn against each other based on league positions, with the higher seeded team playing at home. The top 12 are also rewarded with a place in the following season’s Premier League International Cup competition.
Coach’s View…
Positive results during pre-season have been hard to come by with upwards of ten of lead coach Mark Robson’s squad travelling with the first team during their pre-season tour of the United States. Although Robson acknowledges the invaluable experience of his players during their time with the first team, he was pleased to have them back to strengthen the U21s.
“It’s been great to see them involved with the first team,” he remarked. “By all accounts, they’ve applied themselves really well. The impression they’ve left with the first team staff and players is really positive and that’s the most important thing.
“They’re such a good group in terms of their focus, attitude, and their understanding of what they need to do to get where they want to be. They’ve lifted the quality and the spirits since they’ve come back in. The enthusiasm and energy has gone to another level.”
Looking ahead to Friday night, Robson and his coaching staff are well aware of the threat Brighton pose, but will be encouraged by the young Hammers’ second half showing in their last pre-season fixture against Club Brugge's development squad, where they almost came back from a four-goal deficit.
“I think Brighton are probably one of the better footballing teams in the league,” Robson continued. “They have been for the last few years. There’s a big influence from the first team on how they play, both in and out of possession. It will be really tough game.
“Against Brugge, we obviously struggled in the first half. At the break we changed the shape and I challenged the boys to get after them and win the second half, which we did. I was really pleased with the football we played and the fighting spirit showed.”
Opposition…
Despite finishing 13th in the Premier League 2 regular season after picking up 29 points from their 20 league fixtures, Brighton matched favourites Chelsea blow for blow in their round of 16 play-off. The young Seagulls came from behind three times before eventually falling to a Zain Silcott-Duberry strike only three minutes from time in extra time.
Known for their high press, this season the young Seagulls welcome a host of new players from their U18s squad who will be looking to build on last year’s campaign.
Brighton’s U21s enter the Premier League 2 campaign off a strong pre-season which saw them record victories against Conference League South outfit Worthing, as well as Brentford and Bournemouth’s development sides, scoring ten goals and conceding just one in those three fixtures.
Last Time Out…
In their last pre-season outing before the start of the Premier League 2 campaign, West Ham United’s U21s were involved in a dramatic 4-3 defeat to Club NXT U23s. Despite trailing by four goals at the break, the young Hammers courageously fought back in the second period to reduce the deficit to just one. Robson and his coaching staff will be hoping the team’s dominant second half display will be a sign of things to come.
