It has been reported that youth striker Elliot Lee’s contract talks have stalled, and that he could leave in the summer on a free. His goalscoring abilities have him touted as a very promising youngster, and if he does not sign a contract extension at the club, it begs the question of whether we are set to miss out on the future of a great talent— or whether Lee isn’t quite up to top flight football just yet.
In the youth squads, his career thus far as certainly earned him the title of ‘promising.’ In the 2011- 2012 season, he was the Under-18s leading goalscorer, having scored 20 times in that season. In this current season, he has managed to score an impressive 13 goals in eight games for the U-21s. He spent some time this season on loan at Colchester United, playing in four games and scoring once, but has yet to make an impact on West Ham’s first team.
Lee has made just one league appearance in the senior team, as a substitute in the less than memorable 1-0 defeat to Stoke City in August, and one FA Cup appearance in the 2012-2013 season.
This lack of first team football becomes more evident when considering that even in a season where we were but a hop-skip-and-a-jump away from grabbing people from the crowd to play up front, Sam Allardyce preferred to play a team consisting of no strikers, rather than really giving the prolific youngster an opportunity to appear in the first team squad.
Was this the stubborn nature of Allardyce, or is Lee not quite ready for first team football in the eyes of West Ham – something that would undoubtedly cause a difference in opinion when it comes to the player’s valuation of himself compared with the valuation of him by the club.
Of course, it’s always possible that a club perceived as bigger and perhaps more financially generous lies in the ambitions and dreams of Elliot Lee – but if he is worth keeping for the promise of his future, then I certainly hope we can bring a renewed offer back to the table to entice him to stay.
It will always be a shame if a player who was so prolific at youth level does not then graduate to regularly pulling on a shirt for the first team. We’ve had very few “ones that got away” fresh out of the academy gates, and it’s important to remember that of the players who leave the academy without first enjoying some first team football, few do well elsewhere. All of the ‘next big things’ we’ve had of late that enjoy regular first team football – Jack Collison, James Tomkins, and Mark Noble – currently play for us.
Will you be disappointed if contract talks do not carry on with Elliot Lee? Are we set to miss out on a great talent, or should we have seen him in the first team by now? Let us know below.
He shows great potential but is too short for the type of football we currently play.
I could see us giving him a nominal fee, while keeping him out on loan until the move to the OS.
The lad shows he can score goals, let him go certainly not., as for being too short certainly not what about Tony Cottee, come to that Messi! Could be the perfect foil for Carroll
Sam not every player in a Hammers shirt has to be over 6 ft tall! Ever heard of the Little and Large pairings.