Ashley Fletcher was very much signed with the future in mind when he arrived on a free transfer from Manchester United last July.
He snubbed a new deal at Old Trafford to seek pastures new that would offer him a more tangible route into the first-team and given the sudden emergence of Marcus Rashford, that route was very much blocked at Manchester United.
The 21-year-old was expecting to either go out on loan or spend the majority of his time with the U23 squad but featured regularly for the Hammers in the early part of the season given the injuries to Andre Ayew, Andy Carroll and Diafra Sakho.
To date, Fletcher has made 17 appearances for West Ham this season, scoring once against his former side United in the EFL Cup but has spent an increasing amount of time with the U23s of late with the return to form and fitness for both Ayew and Carroll.
Graham Westley, West Ham U23s manager, has praised Fletcher’s performances of late and stating that his outing during the 0-0 draw with Newcastle U23s was his best to date in a Hammers shirt.
It’s probably the best I’ve seen [Ashley] Fletcher play in a game for us, against a physical side and they’re a lot older than us.
He took the ball in for us, had a great chance at the back post at the end of the first half, and he’s a player who can go in your first team and do a job for you.
He was robust, he threatened the space in behind, and he challenge for balls in the air.
Fletcher does still feature regularly in matchday squads for the Hammers but seems like he’s impressing enough behind the scenes to earn himself an increased role next season.
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