David Moyes has handed Levi Laing, Freddie Potts and Divin Mubama further opportunities to impress from kick-off in West Ham United’s Unmissable Football tour fixture with Tottenham Hotspur in Perth on Tuesday evening.
Academy of Football graduates Laing, Potts and Mubama all start at Optus Stadium, where the Irons will be seeking to make it two wins from two from their week-long stay in Western Australia.
Laing and Potts also started and impressed as the Hammers defeated A-League side Perth Glory 6-2 at the same venue on Saturday evening, while FA Youth Cup winner Mubama scored one goal and saw another long-range effort tipped onto the crossbar in a strong showing.
The trio of youngsters are joined in the starting XI by eight senior first-team players.
Łukasz Fabiański, who captained the Irons to victory against Glory at the weekend, is again the starting goalkeeper against Ange Postecoglou’s Spurs.
The Pole will line up behind a back four of Laing, Kurt Zouma, Angelo Ogbonna and Emerson, who scored West Ham’s fourth goal in the Perth win.
In what looks like a midfield four, 19-year-old Potts will partner Flynn Downes in the centre, with UEFA Europa Conference League final matchwinner Jarrod Bowen on the right and semi-final hero Pablo Fornals on the left.
Mubama’s reward for his eye-catching display against Glory is a role partnering the experienced Danny Ings in attack. The latter scored a pre-season winner for Aston Villa against Leeds United in the Australian city of Brisbane a year ago, and is enjoying his third visit to Australia as a Premier League player.
The No18 also played here at Optus Stadium last summer, when he featured for Villa in a 2-2 draw with Manchester United.
West Ham United: Fabiański, Laing, Zouma, Ogbonna, Emerson, Downes, Potts, Bowen, Fornals, Mubama, Ings
Subs: Anang (GK), Knightbridge (GK), Luizão, Cresswell, Swyer, Chesters, Coventry, Earthy, Scamacca
