Sporting CB ‘B’ v West Ham United U21s
Pre-Season Match, Sporting CP Youth Academy, Saturday 9 July 2022, 10.00am
When & Where etc…
West Ham United U21s will kick-off their 2022/23 pre-season fixture schedule on Saturday morning with a fixture on European soil, against Sporting CP ‘B’.
Mark Robson’s development side have spent the last two weeks on camp, working closely alongside first-team manager David Moyes and the senior squad in Scotland last week before traveling to Troia in Portugal for a hot weather training camp.
After five days of intensive work, double sessions and fitness training, the young Hammers will now play a Sporting B side that play in Liga 3, the third tier of the Portuguese league system, which was reformed in 2021.
The fixture begins a busy pre-season schedule for the U21s over July as the Irons prepare to take on EFL opposition such as Lincoln City.
Tickets…
Saturday’s pre-season fixture is set to be played at the Sporting CP Youth Academy, where access will unfortunately be limited for attending supporters.
West Ham United fans can begin preparations for the U21s’ upcoming pre-season fixtures with Ebbsfleet United on Friday 15 July and Lincoln City on Tuesday 26 July by buying tickets from the respective home teams.
Tickets for the Ebbsfleet United fixture can be purchased here, while tickets for the trip to Lincoln City can be purchased here.
How To Follow…
The U21’s pre-season fixture away to Sporting CP ‘B’ is unfortunately not available to watch live, but match updates will be provided as they happen through the West Ham United Twitter feed.
A match report, detailing the happenings from Saturday’s pre-season match in Portugal, will be available immediately following the fixture at whufc.com, while full highlights and exclusive reaction from the match will also be provided at whufc.com and on the West Ham United YouTube channel shortly after.
Team News…
The pre-season schedule has permitted a host of U21s players, who featured heavily for the development side last season, to step up and train with the first team squad during their pre-season camp in Evian.
The likes of Ajibola Alese, Harrison Ashby, Dan Chesters, Manny Longelo, Armstrong Oxoflex and Freddie Potts are working closely with David Moyes’ squad, meaning a number of U18s have the opportunity to impress U21s lead coach Mark Robson and assistant coach Steve Potts.
Archie Woods, Michael Forbes, Regan Clayton, George Earthy, Kaelen Casey, Junior Robinson and Jacob Knightbridge are all in Troia after penning their first professional deals in the summer and will be looking to play their first minutes as professional footballers.
Oliver Scarles, Remy Coddington and Lewis Orford have also been called into the squad in Portugal and will be hopeful of playing time against Sporting CP B, as will new signing Patrick Kelly.
Opposition…
Reformed in 2019, Sporting CP B play in the third tier of Portuguese football, Liga 3, having narrowly avoided relegation from the division in the second stage of the 2021/22 campaign.
The first stage saw the young Portuguese side finish eighth in Serie South, after seven wins and five draws in 22 league fixture meaning they advanced to the relegation series. Placed in a group with fellow Serie South side RC, and Serie North teams Oliveira do Hospital and Oriental Dragon, Sporting B finished third by claiming ten points.
The young side are coached by Filipe Celikkaya, who previously served as the assistant at Ukrainian team Shakthar Donetsk and fellow Portuguese teams GD Chaves and Vitória SC.
The Sporting CP Academy has produced dozens of notable names. Former Hammer Jose Fonte came through the system, regularly playing for Sporting CP B. The legendary Paulo Futre, who played for the Irons in the 1996/97 season, is also a graduate, although the status as ‘most famous graduate’ undoubtedly goes to Cristiano Ronaldo.
