Ollie Scarles has burst onto the scene with the West Ham United first-team this season.
West Ham teenager Ollie Scarles is the latest in a long line of academy graduates to come through at Chadwell Heath.
Ollie Scarles’ performances for West Ham this season have already caught the eye of England boss Thomas Tuchel.
And the 19-year-old Hammers left-back undoubtedly has a hugely exciting future ahead of him in the game.
His talent is obvious to see, but sometimes his incredible maturity that defies his tender years goes unnoticed.
Photo by Harry Murphy - Danehouse/Getty Images
Photo by Harry Murphy – Danehouse/Getty Images
The fact that Ollie Scarles texted Julen Lopetegui when the Spaniard left West Ham to thank him for giving him an opportunity to play for the first-team says it all really.
The Hammers academy graduate is a supremely impressive physical specimen.
It’s worth mentioning as well that he was actually a central midfielder by trade when he was coming through the youth ranks.
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The fact that he has evolved and developed into a left-back, or a left wing-back, so seamlessly tells us all we need to know about his application, work-rate and obviously, his talent.
West Ham starlet Ollie Scarles says he must improve one thing
The teenager clearly has a really mature head on his young shoulders.
Not only is he supremely talented, but he’s clearly a very hard worker as well, and is obviously desperate to keep improving.
Right now, it looks like Scarles will reach the very top of the game.
However, the Hammers youngster has admitted that he needs to get better at one specific thing, when speaking to The Evening Standard:
Photo by Harry Murphy - Danehouse/Getty Images
Photo by Harry Murphy – Danehouse/Getty Images
“My defensive game has really come on recently. It’s one thing I felt I really need to work on. In recent performances, I’ve shown that it’s come on quite a bit. Also, I really like to show that I can get forward and be creative.”
Interestingly, I would suggest that Scarles is actually more than good enough defensively. He’s certainly a better defender than Emerson Palmieri in my opinion.
However, I want to see more from the 19-year-old going forward.
Also, I feel like he needs to be far more progressive and brave with his passing at times, but that will surely come as he gains more confidence with the first-team.
What David Moyes said about Ollie Scarles in 2023
It was Moyes who gave Scarles his first-team debut in November 2022, away at FCSB in the Europa Conference League group stage.
Scarles was just 16 at the time, and he really impressed.
Since then, he has exponentially matured as a player, and grown into his role with the first-team at the London Stadium.
Back in 2023, the West Ham hierarchy allegedly asked David Moyes what he really though of Ollie Scarles.
Moyes apparently confidently said that ‘Scarles would progress into a Premier League footballer’.
And the Scot has already been proven right.