We Are West Ham podcaster Tom Edwards has recently discussed the future of West Ham United’s young attacker Nathan Holland.
The 22-year-old Englishman spent the second half of the 2019/20 campaign on loan with League One side Oxford United (per Transfermarkt).
During his stay at the Kassam Stadium, Holland made 12 appearances in which he scored three goals and registered no assists.
When the Hammers recently announced their squad numbers for the upcoming season, Holland was not named with a number (per West Ham).
So, in the latest episode of the We Are West Ham Podcast, Edwards felt that the young forward’s lack of squad number was indicative of him not being favoured by David Moyes.
He said: “I’ve seen a bit of Nathan Holland, actually, at Oxford United, he was on the box a few times in the FA Cup, I was up at Wolves when he came on.
“He’s clearly got a bit about him [and he’s] a talented player, so especially when we just sold a winger, I found [his lack of squad number] a bit odd.
“It’s sort of a sign that he may not be involved or, at least, Moyes isn’t planning on using him and it would take a lot for him to get called up into the squad.
“Ever since he had that loan deal, it all went a bit cold on him. I know he got a bit of an injury there at one point and he hasn’t really played much football since.
“There was so much talk about him last year – he was nominated for PL 2 Player of the Season. So he’s obviously [a] talented boy, but it’s just another one of those young players who seems like he’ll drift out of the club.”
TIF Thoughts…
As can be seen in what the podcaster had to say, Edwards believes that the fact Holland has not been given a shirt number for the upcoming season perhaps suggests his long-term future may not be with the Irons.
Do you think Nathan Holland should be given a chance in the first team this season?
No, he's not good enough
Yes, he has potential
Ten of his 12 appearances in all competitions for Oxford were in League One and in those ten matches Holland turned in a weak 6.54/10 average rating (per WhoScored).
So, perhaps it is fairly obvious to see why Moyes may not believe the youngster is good enough to challenge for a spot in the Hammers’ first team.