West Ham co-chairman David Gold has waxed lyrical about academy director Terry Westley after Grady Diangana’s breakthrough into the first-team fold.
The 20-year-old attacker has joined Declan Rice in graduating from the Hammers academy into the first-team set-up, with the tricky wide man having made five senior appearances so far this term.
Gold has now raved about the work of Westley, who oversees the academy at Chadwell Heath, and shared his joy at seeing players break through into the first-team.
Speaking to Claret and Hugh, Gold said: “We had a fabulous transfer window and then to see young Grady Diangana emerge as a first team player as well as Declan Rice is wonderful. It’s been so many years since that happened at this club and it is down to Terry and his staff. That deserves to be recognised and honoured.
“Both these players have been nurtured within the West Ham system and it’s pure joy to see them emerge as first team players. The great thing is others look to be on the way through.
“Usually when youngsters arrive in the team they tend to pass the ball quickly because quite naturally they don’t want to be seen making an error. But that’s not the case with either of these two lads. They are happy to get involved in strong tackling and take players on which is great to see.”
OPINION
It is good to see the work that Westley does at Chadwell Heath recognised at the highest level within the club, with Gold obviously blown away by the steps made by the academy in recent months. Rice had been the only player to successfully make the leap from academy to first-team in many years, and having Diangana now join him is a huge victory for the Hammers. West Ham used to possess one of the best academies in the country, so to see it decline so far over the last decade or so must have been painful for those involved. Westley has however breathed new life into things at that level, and his work is now paying off massively for the academy and the club. Diangana’s performance against Burnley on Saturday was his best yet, and really cemented his place among the first-team as a player who can make an impact going forward. Hopefully players like Joe Powell and Conor Coventry can follow him into the senior side as regulars soon enough.