SHARE

The likes of Declan Rice and Grady Diangana have shown there is a route into the first team at West Ham under Manuel Pellegrini.

And it could be Nathan Holland who is next to make the step up from the academy if he impresses during pre-season.

He has been a standout performer for the U23 and has already made the first team bench for three games – with one of those coming in the 2-1 loss against Manchester United this season.

The next step now is to get on the pitch and he is likely to get the chance to do that during pre-season.

West Ham's Nathan HollandThe challenge is to perform well enough that he doesn’t fade to the back of Pellegrini’s mind once the campaign begins.

If he were to impress at London Stadium it wouldn’t be the first time, as he scored the U23s’ first ever goal at the stadium with a wonderful curling effort.

He is undoubtedly a talented player, who has progressed well since joining West Ham in 2017, despite picking up some injuries during that time.

He and many Hammers fans will be hoping 2019/20 is the campaign in which he kicks on and starts playing first-team football.