West Ham United’s under-18s are having a season to remember and could be crowned Under-18s Premier League South champions this weekend.
Kevin Keen’s side, who will also play host to Southampton in the semi-finals of the FA Youth Cup next month, have dominated the south section of the Under-18s Premier League, winning almost all of their league matches this season.
The young Hammers, whose under-18s squad has included the likes of Divin Mubama, Ollie Scarles, and Kaelan Casey this season, have won 15 of their 17 league matches so far this season and should they beat West Bromwich Albion on Saturday afternoon, will have sealed the league title with four games to spare, if Fulham fail to win at Norwich City.
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If those circumstances do not happen, West Ham still have very little left to do to clinch the southern section title, requiring just four points from their final five league games, including this Saturday’s trip to the Baggies.
West Ham currently have a 15-point lead over second-place Crystal Palace, although Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur in third and fourth place are closer to the Hammers due to games in hand.
With West Ham already on 45 points, the highest any of their longshot chasers can reach is Fulham on 48, while Spurs can get 46 and Palace can only reach West Ham’s current total of 45 before the end of the season. The rest of the division, including Chelsea and Arsenal, cannot mathematically catch Keen’s Irons.
If West Ham avoid defeat at West Brom, Palace will be out of the picture. A win would put Tottenham out of the running and Fulham’s hopes of catching them would be over, if they fail to win at Norwich.
In two of the previous three seasons, West Ham have finished second in the south section but have never finished top, with the winner of the south section taking on the winner of the north section in a national final, with the winner qualifying for next season’s UEFA Youth League (the under-19 equivalent of the UEFA Champions League).
Last season, Manchester City were crowned national champions after beating Southampton 2-1 in the final.
This year, West Ham are likely to face City in the national final. Man City currently have a ten-point lead at the top of the northern section, but closest chasers Sunderland and Manchester United both have three games in hand on them.
West Ham's academy is famous for producing future England stars but in recent years has struggled to develop many academy graduates into first-team stars.
One of the exceptions of course is current captain Declan Rice, who has been heavily linked with a summer transfer exit at the end of this season. Defender Ben Johnson, who has made 81 first-team appearances, is also a product of the club's academy.
However, the success of this group who have succeeded in the league and FA Youth Cup to date provide a huge influx of first-team talent in years to come.
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