Youngsters shine as Hammers beat Northampton in pre-season friendly

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West Ham United earned their first victory of pre-season after they defeated League Two side Northampton Town 2-1 at Sixfields.

Irons manager David Moyes wasn’t present at the match as the Irons played two fixtures simultaneously on Tuesday. The Scotsman had taken half of the West Ham squad to face Leyton Orient with the two sides unable to break the deadlock with the result a goalless 0-0 draw.

It was instead Moyes’ assistant, former England left-back and under-21’s manager, Stuart Pearce, who took charge of the side. His squad included the experienced heads of Manuel Lanzini, Jarrod Bowen, Craig Dawson and Ryan Fredericks with the rest being players from the clubs’ under-23 squad.

The Hammers got off to the perfect start, scoring in the opening 90 seconds. Bowen played a one-two with Fredericks as he drove to the edge of the area. The full-back attempted to square the ball to striker Ademipo Odubeko, however, Cobblers man Sid Nelson got to the ball first. Unfortunately for Nelson, his attempted clearance ended up in the back of his own net.

West Ham doubled their advantage just 10 minutes later, and it was a well-worked goal too. Keenan Appiah-Forson played the ball into Lanzini who then laid off Fredericks, with the full-back positioned on the right flank. He crossed the ball into Odubeko, whose attempt was blocked with Lanzini picking up the rebound. The Argentine midfielder teed off Conor Coventry who slid his effort into the bottom corner of the net.

Northampton did pull one back on the half-hour mark. Nelson launched the ball forward after the Cobblers won a free-kick in their own half. Danny Rose headed the ball onto Mitch Pinnock who let off a thunderous strike which Hammers goalkeeper Nathan Trott had to reach low down for to make the save. The ball, unfortunately, fell into the path off striker Benny Ashley-Seal who played it across goal for Sam Hoskins to poke home.

West Ham did have a couple of chances moments later to restore their two-goal advantage, both coming from Nathan Holland. The 23-year-old played the ball to Lanzini, who immediately played it back to his fellow midfielder. Though his angle was tight, he still went for goal, however, he was denied by Liam Roberts.

Just seconds after his shot, the ball fell into his path again after Roberts palmed away a cross from Fredericks, which almost crept into the net. However, he blazed his second attempt over the crossbar.

The hosts made 11 changes after the break, two of which included Scott Pollock and Caleb Chukwuemeka, who were involved in the best of the chances of the second 45.

The latter led a break forward after winning the ball off Bowen, he drove the ball all the way to the area and played it to Pollock, the 20-year-old passed it to Dylan Connolly who then laid off Paul Lewis. The midfielder tried to curl one into the corner, but Trott made an excellent save to deny him.

With 10 minutes to go, Northampton won a free kick which was whipped in by Pollock. Fraser Horsfall was on the end of the set-piece, however, he guided his header just wide of the net.

West Ham held on for victory and it was a performance that Pearce would have been very pleased with. His youthful side impressed at Sixfields and played some really attractive football.

They were constantly playing quick one-twos with each other, were taking minimal touches on the ball before releasing a teammate, were solid at the back and looked dangerous every time they went forward in the first-half.

Bowen and Lanzini, as you would expect, were key in these attacks, but full credit should be given to the youngsters who provided good reinforcements.

The Irons’ left-back Ajibola Alese, alongside fellow defender Ryan Fredericks, played high up the pitch and would make constant overlapping runs over the likes of Lanzini and Holland.

Appiah-Forson also had an impressive game for West Ham. He had some really good movement on the ball and was one of those as mentioned who took few touches before passing it to his teammates.

The goalkeeper Nathan Trott should also claim recognition for his role in the match. He didn’t have much to do in front of the sticks, but whenever he did, he would pull off some great saves. In particular, the one which saw him deny Paul Lewis for a Northampton equaliser.

Wide man Nathan Holland also did well for the Hammers and had plenty of chances throughout the first 50 minutes to put his name on the scoresheet. It had been speculated that Hull City wanted the 23-year-old back in January and their manager Grant McCann was in fact at Sixfields watching the game.

The Tigers have been placed under a transfer embargo however meaning they can only sign players on free, or on short-term loan deals. If McCann is still interested in Holland on a short-term basis, he wouldn’t be a bad acquisition to the newly promoted Championship side.

It’s a huge season ahead for West Ham United, with at least six games in the Europa League to play alongside the usual Premier League and domestic cup matches. There’s a good chance that injuries will creep in and they will therefore need to build on their squad. With the way these youngsters performed, could it help pave their way into the first team?

For Northampton, despite the loss, there were plenty of positives to take from the performance. Manager Jon Brady would have been personally happy with the way new signing Mitch Pinnock got on. He was somewhat a catalyst for his side in the first-half and his delivery of the ball helped create attempts on goal for his teammates.

The young attacking pair of Pollock and Chukwuemeka also impressed after they came on. They added an extra dimension to Northampton going forward, they are quick and agile and as already mentioned were heavily involved in their big chances of the second-half.

Chukwuemeka has been linked with a move away this summer with teams like Tottenham Hotspur, Rangers and Belgian side Club Brugge all sniffing for the forward’s signature. From the impact he made when he came on, it’s not hard to see why that is the case.

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