Academy of Football defenders Ajibola Alese and Jamal Baptiste have earned their first call-ups to the England U20 and England U18 development squads respectively.
Alese, who recently made his West Ham United debut with an impressive showing in the 5-1 Carabao Cup win over Hull City, progresses from making his U19s debut for the Young Lions last season.
The 19-year-old will now hope to make his first appearance for Lee Carsley’s U20s side when they take on Wales in a behind-closed-doors friendly at St George’s Park during the forthcoming international break.
Baptiste, meanwhile, who made his England U17s bow in 2019/20, has continued his upward trajectory with a call-up for a Young Lions U18s training camp, led by head coach Kevin Betsy.
Having put pen-to-paper on a Scholarship deal over the summer, the 16-year-old centre-back also recently made his maiden first-team appearance for West Ham United, playing the full 90 minutes of the pre-season win over Wycombe Wanderers.
The duo’s call-ups further the impressive recognition that West Ham’s Academy received on the international stage last season, with just under 20 players between the ages of 16 and 20-years-old going on to represent their country during 2019/20.
