Ollie Scarles reacts as emotional West Ham exit message sent
Ollie Scarles is West Ham through and through.
Scarles is the latest star to emerge from West Ham’s academy, having rejoined the Hammers after being released from Chelsea’s under-12 team.
While the 20-year-old has been making appearances for his boyhood club, others with whom Scarles spent time with in the youth ranks have not made it.
The current Irons ace has reacted after an exit was confirmed at the London Stadium.
Gideon Kodua sends emotional West Ham exit message
Gideon Kodua has left West Ham to join Luton Town, where he previously spent time away from the Hammers on loan.
The 21-year-old winger took to Instagram on 6 February to confirm the news with an emotional message to the club, saying: “Thank you to everyone at West Ham for helping me on my journey, I wish you all the best for the future.”
Scarles reacted by liking the post and commenting with two heart emojis.
Lewis Orford and former Irons youth star Elisha Sowunmi, who recently left to join Tottenham, also liked the post.
Could West Ham regret Kodua exit?
Kodua joined the academy at Rush Green in 2017, having grew up in London, and signed his first professional contract in December 2022.
He captained the side that won the 2023 FA Youth Cup, beating Arsenal in the final, and he scored in that game.
The young attacker scored 26 goals and notched 12 assists in 51 appearances for the Under-18s, and was then promoted to the Under-21s.
| Team (West Ham) | Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| Under-18s | 51 | 26 | 12 |
| Under-21s | 23 | 7 | 2 |
There, he would score seven and assist two in 23 matches, but he never earned a call-up to the first team and that suggests that his level was not enough.
Ultimately, the Hammers will not know whether they should have kept Kodua until the future, if he makes it to the Premier League and stars, maybe they will regret it.
However, given that he has moved to a League One side, the decision is clearly the right one at the moment, but you never know what will happen in football.
Nuno Espirito Santo has plenty of options in his attack, such as Jarrod Bowen, Taty Castellanos and Pablo, so it was always a long shot for the youth academy star to try and make it into his plans anytime soon, so the switch is probably best for all parties.