Championship side Queens Park Rangers have confirmed the signing of centre back Ben Wells from West Ham despite the Irons offering the youngster a contract.
The Hoops revealed their capture of the 18-year-old defender on their official website, the Hammers confirming their London rivals’ signing on their own site, with Wells putting pen to paper on a one-year deal at Loftus Road.
The second tier team state that the former West Ham under-18 captain had chosen to make the switch across the capital in spite of the fact his now-old club had tabled a contract offer for him to stay at the London Stadium.
Opinion
This will not be the biggest blow to West Ham but it will still sting a little that they have seen their long serving youth defender leave for a rival across the city. Wells was a regular for the under-18 side, making a total of 41 appearances at that particular youth level last season, while he also managed to force his way into the reckoning for the under-23 team, turning out three times and being left as an unused substitute another three throughout the season. The fact they offered him a contract suggests they had high hopes but it seems as though QPR are offering him more of what he wants – be that money, regular game time or maybe a more direct route to the senior side. The Hammers have a proud tradition of their youth talents doing well wherever that may be, and if Wells does go on to be a success, then the Irons will know that they had a hand in helping him get to where he does.