West Ham have signed midfielder Peter Stroud from MLS side New York Red Bulls.
The American side released the United States’ under-17 squad on their website which revealed that Stroud, a central enforcer, was officially a Hammers player.
According to trusted Twitter source ExWHUemployee, the 16-year-old defensive midfielder had been on trial with the London side this summer.
According to reports, New York Red Bulls young player Peter Stroud has left their academy to join ours. The player is highly rated and has been on trial with us over the summer. He obtains a work permit/passport via his English dad. ⚒ pic.twitter.com/eyOGebo16s
— ExWHUEmployee (@ExWHUEmployee) August 1, 2018
The source also revealed that the youngster obtained a work permit and English passport through his English father.
OPINION
It is good to see that West Ham aren’t just focusing on big-money signings this summer and that they’re still looking to the future. The 16-year-old must be highly-rated with the Hammers to consider inviting him for a trial and he must have impressed the coaching staff with his performances in training, this could be an exciting signing for years to come. The London club’s academy system has produced some very good players over the years including Frank Lampard, Michael Carrick, Joe Cole, Rio Ferdinand, Mark Noble and most recently, Reece Oxford and Declan Rice. The youth team of a football club can be very lucrative if it gets enough investment and it’s given importance by the club. Just imagine how much those players would have cost to buy when they were playing but West Ham produced them for nothing and sold them on for big bucks. Maybe Peter Stroud can be the next superstar to emerge from the famous academy.
