A new overnight star has instantly endeared himself to fans by suggesting rising young talents are now better off joining West Ham than rivals Chelsea.
Traditionally there is no love lost between West Ham and Chelsea, on or off the pitch.
That rivalry peaked when the likes of John Terry, Frank Lampard, Joe Cole and Glen Johnson defected to Stamford Bridge from West Ham.
It was painful for Hammers fans to stomach as their Chelsea counterparts labelled West Ham their feeder club.
Although West Ham did get a measure of revenge when they took on Declan Rice after he was discarded by the Blues and built him up to be one of the top midfielders in world football – bagging £105m when selling him on.
Behind Millwall and Spurs, Chelsea are historically the Irons’ biggest rivals – although that has become somewhat diluted since the Blues’ rise to being among the world’s elite.
West Ham and Chelsea building young sides in different ways
While Chelsea have a reputation of late for hoovering up some of the top young players on the planet, West Ham have always been famous for producing them.
There have been barren spells over the years but the self-styled Academy of Football has always had a conveyor belt of quality youngsters.
However, sometimes West Ham lacked the right manager to bring them through.
Chelsea have taken a different approach under Todd Boehly and co, buying up the best players around aged between 18 and 24.
West Ham have wasted too much money signing older, experienced players with no sell-on value.
Now they are paying the price, stuck with having to sell in order to buy to fund Graham Potter’s rebuild.
In his first job since his sacking by Chelsea, Potter is returning to what he has been good at in the past, building a team around young players.
With West Ham’s PSR situation, Potter has made it clear from the start he will not be afraid to look to the club’s academy.
The latest example of that came in West Ham’s pre-season friendly clash with Man United in New York.
The Premier League Summer Series match ended 2-1 to Man United.
But West Ham were much-improved in the second half when they changed their ageing, immobile, sideways passing midfield to bring Academy duo Freddie Potts and Preston Fearon into the heart of the side.
Sensation says young stars better off at West Ham than Chelsea
Potts is expected to be pushing for a regular starting spot under Potter after impressing during two spells out on loan.
Fearless Fearon was a big surprise when he was brought on by Potter against Man United.
In his maiden first-team appearance at the tender age of 18 – Fearon really caught the eye with the energetic star combining well to help the Hammers finish the stronger side at the MetLife Stadium.
The overnight sensation says young stars are now better off joining West Ham than Chelsea.
In a refreshingly honest, mature and bold post-match interview after his first appearance in the senior side, Fearon revealed he and his family always believed West Ham would be a much better environment for him to blossom.
He says the rapid progress he and other young players have made under Potter did not seem possible when explaining why he left Chelsea for the Hammers a few years ago.
“I haven’t been here at West Ham that long, three or four years, compared to other people my age,” Fearon said on West Ham’s website.
“But as soon as I came here I knew West Ham was going to be a great club for me. My Dad said it straight away, I look so much more confident than when I was at Chelsea, my last club. The environment and everything just suited for me.
“Two years later I was captain and just playing at my best. Every game I just felt like I was getting better and better. I was getting awarded for the stuff I was doing on the pitch and off the pitch.
“I was injured, working hard and all the coaches saw that. They saw how much work I was putting in. It just kept getting better and better. It’s been amazing really.”
Fearon says he is now hungry to kick on and become a regular member of the first team squad.
Potter ‘excited’ by ex Chelsea starlet Fearon after Hammers bow
Potter was similarly enthused about West Ham’s future, picking Potts and Fearon out for praise.
“Freddie and Preston, in particular, you could see the quality they bring, what type of players they are,” Potter told West Ham’s website.
“So that’s exciting for us.”
Clearly the expectation at Chelsea is to complete on all fronts so they need players who are ready to do that from the get-go.
But Fearon’s comments send a great message to top young talent around the country that West Ham is the place to be right now if they want a realistic pathway to a chance at Premier League football.
Make no mistake there is still plenty of pressure playing in front of 62,500 at West Ham.
Especially with supporters wanting a drastic improvement on a dismal last 18 months.
Whether Potter shows the same confidence in Potts and Fearon when the real deal rolls around in a few weeks remains to be seen.
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