West Ham United midfielder ‘delighted’ as contract signed
Aaron Kamara has expressed his delight at signing off on fresh terms to extend his stay at West Ham United.
While the focus over the past few weeks has been on signing new players for West Ham, the importance of retaining your own talent cannot be overlooked.
West Ham have lost several promising youth players through the years, with an inability or unwillingness to tie them down to new deals, and that can come back to bite you.
Aji Alese, Pierre Ekwah and Divin Mubama are just three examples of players who had a big future at West Ham before being allowed to seek pastures elsewhere.
Thankfully for the Irons, that concern has been curtailed in regards to Kamara, with the teen having agreed on a new deal to stay at the London Stadium, and he is delighted to have done so.
Aaron Kamara agrees new deal at the London Stadium
At just 17 years old, Kamara has agreed to sign his first professional contract with the Hammers, having impressed at Under-18s level throughout the season.
Speaking via West Ham club channels (8 February), Kamara aired his delight in signing the contract.
“This week has been unreal,” Kamara said.
“I’m delighted because not many people from where I am from get this opportunity, so I just want to take it with both hands and thank West Ham United for giving me the chance to showcase myself.”
If Kamara can maintain his current rate of development, there is every chance that the teen will have a bright future. The fact that Graham Potter is in charge can only bode well for the youngster.
West Ham need to utilise their youth system
While there have been many downfalls for the Irons over the years, one of the biggest has been their inability to utilise their youth setup to its maximum potential.
Several players have shown plenty of promise and yet very few have been afforded the chance to impress, despite West Ham enduring a fairly horrid campaign.
That unwillingness to unleash their potential has seen several high-profile youngsters depart, and if that trend is to continue, they will lose many, many more and Kamara could fall victim to that.
While there’s no reason to throw a 17-year-old straight in, Potter simply has to be monitoring his development with a view of including him in the future.