---
title: "West Ham’s best U21 XI – who are our best current academy prospects?"
canonical: "https://readwestham.com/2015/10/25/west-hams-best-u21-xi-best-current-academy-prospects/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Michael Oliver"
section: "Feature Writers"
published: "2015-10-25T17:04:17Z"
modified: "2015-10-25T17:04:17Z"
---

# West Ham’s best U21 XI – who are our best current academy prospects?

West Ham have been famously dubbed ‘the Academy of Football’ after being synonymous with the development of home-grown talent and blooding them into the first-team from an early age.

However, the years of Joe Cole, Rio Ferdinand and Frank Lampard bursting onto the scene at Upton Park are long gone, and outside of club captain Mark Noble and James Tomkins, there’s been very little to shout about regarding the academy in the last decade or so.

Now though, with the emergence of several promising talents, the West Ham academy appears to be heading the right direction.

But who are the best of the bunch? Here’s who we think are the ones to watch over the next few years as we create the best West Ham U21 XI.