Jean-Clair Todibo has picked out West Ham’s best young rising star – and has gone one step further by saying he believes the player is destined to play for England.
The high praise from the French international will only add to the growing excitement around the Hammers’ next generation of talent.
West Ham are the self-styled Academy of Football – but it is with good reason.
The Hammers have always been a conveyor belt of talent from Bobby Moore through to Declan Rice.
It is an immense source of pride for the club’s fans.
There may have been leaner periods for young hopefuls progressing into first team stars but West Ham have consistently produced players who go on to star for club and country.
The Irons have not always had the right managers in place to oversee their progress, though.
That seems to be changing with Graham Potter at the helm.
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Potter has proved he is not afraid to use West Ham’s academy graduates, with Preston Fearon the latest off the production line.
Joe Cole recently claimed West Ham have a new golden generation coming through their academy age groups.
There are a clutch of Academy graduates who are now in and around West Ham’s first team.
Freddie Potts for West Ham United vs Everton in the Premier League Summer Series in the USA
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Striker Callum Marshall, midfielders Freddie Potts, George Earthy and Lewis Orford have been joined by Fearon in getting first team minutes in pre-season.
Defender Kaelan Casey has been in the mix too.
The Brentwood-born 20-year-old is an England Under 20 player and got a start in the pre-season clash with Everton last time out.
Casey made a big error which resulted in Everton scoring the opening goal.
There have been claims Casey could now go out on loan to Swansea City to gain some much-needed experience.
It has been claimed Potter wants to sign a new centre-back with doubts over the ability of Nayef Aguerd and Konstantinos Mavropanos at Premier League level.
And particularly as West Ham’s defence was woeful last season despite the club spending £72m on Max Kilman and Jean-Clair Todibo.
Hammers fans are hoping the likes of Potts, Marshall and Earthy – when he returns from injury – will prove they are up to the standards required in the top flight.
But one Irons youngster in particular has caught the eye of a key first team star.
Todibo has named West Ham’s top young star and is even tipping him for an England call-up.
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If Casey had his confidence knocked by his mistake against Everton, it will be lifted by one of the players he hopes to be partnering in the West Ham team in the coming seasons.
Because Todibo says Casey has seriously impressed him.
And despite not being the quickest defender around, Todibo believes Casey will go on to play at the highest level with his country.
“For me, it’s Kaelan Casey (the young player who has impressed most),” Todibo told Anton Ferdinand in a new interview on West Ham’s YouTube channel.
“But (not just now) since last year when I arrived here and he started to train with us.
“He has impressed me a lot, I love this guy. First of all he’s a good guy, a good human being and as a footballer I think he has all the qualities to go and make a big, big career, without any doubt.”
And Todibo appeared to suggest Casey going out on loan will be the making of a future West Ham and England star.
“(My advice to him would be) first of all what you need is experience and some minutes,” Todibo added.
“Then you create your own experience. Training with professionals is good, but there is nothing more real than a game.
“(My advice to him) would be the first mistake is not the last. As a defender I have made a lot of mistakes and this is the way you learn football and grow also.
“He’s going to make mistakes, he’s going to learn from it. But he just has to chill, because he is a hard worker and he just needs to keep going like this.
“Because if we’re talking about quality then he has too much quality like passing, defensively he is strong, he’s not that quick but he has good positioning.
“So everything is made for him to be a big defender even for England, I hope for him, I really hope for him.
“Because I really see something with this player.”
This is fascinating insight from Todibo, not least because most West Ham fans – if they are honest – would have picked Potts, Earthy, Orford or even Fearon as the club’s top young talent.
Nobody should be sleeping on Casey’s talent, though, it seems.