By Hughie Southon
Moyes must give Mubama his chance
West Ham boss David Moyes will hopefully give Divin Mubama Premier League minutes over the next few weeks. It was probably not a great idea to do so with the Hammers facing some really tough Premier League games at the start of the season.
Mubama
But between now and the start of December we face Everton at home, Brentford away, Forest at home, Burnley away and Palace at the London Stadium.
Don’t get me wrong – none of these should be considered easy but they are more comfortable than the likes of Man City, Liverpool and Newcastle.
And with Danny Ings showing mediocre form at best in Antonio’s absences hopefully the time is near when the youngster gets a shout.
Mubama a prospect we can’t afford to lose
Our good start to the campaign has put his claims on hold it seems despite him being talked up big time at the end of last season. He is a prospect we can ill afford to lose given the problems in finding a top striker at the right price but there may come a point where he will consider he has better possibilities elsewhere if we aren’t very careful.
You highlight a problem that we have been concerned about for some time. Moyes has previous in this area, sticking stubbornly with older players to sub on when off form rather than give a young player a few minutes. We have heard that young players were held back and let go to facilitate the next generation, but they are still not his go to option. Let’s hope he gets to grips.
Frankly, I can’t see Divin Mubama getting a Premier League start at anytime soon……unless there are injuries and/or suspensions. However, for me, Divin is ahead of Danny Ings off the bench as the latter doesn’t fit into the ‘West Ham Way’. As a starter, Divin might be up for selection at the end of November against TSC in the Europa League or in the FA Cup against lower league opposition. I wish him well, as he’s a great prospect at eighteen years of age.