- West Ham United's U18s were beaten 1-0 away at Chelsea on Saturday
- Ike Ugbo scored for the Blues in a close fought encounter
- Assistant manager Mark Phillips was still pleased how his team competed against one of the strongest sides in the division
West Ham United’s U18s succumbed to just their second loss of this season with a 1-0 defeat away at Chelsea.
The Hammers had been in fine form in the early part of the U18 Premier League South Division but came unstuck against a strong Chelsea outfit on Saturday afternoon.
But, according to assistant manager Mark Phillips, they can learn a lot from the display against one of the best sides in the league.
“Chelsea were strong against us but we matched them for most of the game and were unlucky not to get a goal,” said Phillips.
“It was an open game, both sides had good chances but we just came up short against a very, very good side.
The Hammers conceded early on after Ike Ugbo netted for Chelsea, who also had a man sent off in the second half.
The defeat brings to an end the Hammers two game winning streak as they enter the international break just three points behind league leaders Arsenal in 4th place.
“It was always going to be a tough test for our boys this weekend but we ran them close and we can be proud of that.
“Chelsea are an experienced side and we knew they would not sit back like a few other teams have in the past few weeks.
“Conor Coventry stood out for us. He was excellent in the midfield and broke up play really well.
“The lads will bounce back. We’ve got great resolve in us and we’ll pick ourselves up quickly.”
Hammers team: Howes, Johnson, Eggleton (Hamilton, 88), Wells, Longelo, Akinola, Lewis, Coventry, Scully (Barrett, 75), Powell (Henry, 78), Hector-Ingram. Subs not used: Constantinou.