Ben Johnson was one of thirteen products of the Academy of Football to make the trip to Romania and his pride was clear come the final whistle at National Arena on Thursday evening after four youth prospects made their senior debuts against FCSB.
There is no doubt for the quartet of debutants in Romania - including starters Ollie Scarles, who became the sixth youngest player in the Club’s history and Divin Mubama as well as substitutes Kaelan Casey and Kamarai Swyer - that Johnson, with 71 first-team appearances and two senior goals to his name, is someone they will hope to emulate one day.
The No2 progressed through the ranks in east London and could not hide his pride as the next generation made its bow in a 3-0 win over FCSB.
“Ollie was brilliant against FCSB," said Johnson. "Every time he has trained with us he has been really good. His delivery is really good. His composure is great. It is good to see another Academy prospect coming through and playing in the first team.
“Divin as well. He deserved it. He worked so hard when he trained with us. He is such a willing learner. Those boys have got a very bright future.”
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In total, thirteen players from the Academy of Football travelled to Romania, with members of the development squad joining first-team players Conor Coventry and Johnson in the finale of our UEFA Europa Conference League campaign.
With nine featuring as the Hammers beat FCSB 3-0 at National Arena, the young lads showed a class and poise beyond their years to secure a 100% record in the UECL Group B campaign.
“It’s fantastic,” Johnson stated. “To win all six [group-stage matches] and to play well in the majority of the games and finish it off [against FCSB] is a good feeling. It was the last game - but we built into the game and the gaps opened up and we started to play. And we got the win.”
The young Hammers ensured West Ham’s momentum continued in Europe and now the challenge is for the first-team squad as well as the U21s to take that into their respective domestic leagues.
The Hammers first-team have three fixtures left before the break for the 2022 FIFA World Cup - with Crystal Palace and Leicester City visiting London Stadium either side of Blackburn Rovers' trip to east London in the Carabao Cup.
The task is to conclude the first half of 2022/23 with a few more wins under the Irons’ belt.
“Palace is an extremely big game,” Johnson added. “It was important to keep the momentum [with a win against FCSB] as some of us [who played on Thursday] will be needed on Sunday.”
