5️⃣ goals in 4️⃣ appearances! ?@mipoodubeko has been nominated for April's #PL2 Player of the Month award! ?
— West Ham United (@WestHam) May 10, 2021
West Ham United forward Ademipo 'Mipo' Odubeko has been nominated for the Premier League 2 Player of the Month award for April.
The 18-year-old enjoyed a fine month in front of goal for the U23s, netting five times in four appearances as the young Hammers mounted a late-season fightback in Premier League 2 Division 1.
Chief among those performances was an Odubeko hat-trick against former club Manchester United at Leigh Sports Village – the teenager's second-half salvo turning a 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 victory – and a match-winning brace in a 2-1 home win over Everton.
Odubeko said of his nomination: “This is my first time being nominated for this award in my first season of U23s football, so I’m very happy.
"My aim was to help the team pick up as many points as we could, so without my teammates, it wouldn’t have been possible.
"The match against Manchester United was probably my favourite this season as I haven’t played a lot due to injury, but it was a great game and great to score a hat-trick in."
The other nominees for April’s award are: Danny Cashman of Brighton & Hove Albion; Josh Hawkes of Sunderland; Dilan Markanday of Tottenham Hotspur; Daniel Oyegoke of Arsenal; Cole Palmer of Manchester City; and Crysencio Summerville of Leeds United.
The shortlist was decided by the Premier League Football Development Panel after Premier 2 club coaches nominated the best performance by an opposing player in each of their league matches in the month. The Panel will also select the winner.
Having recovered from the injury which ruled him out of the first half of the campaign, Odubeko went on to score 14 goals in just 12 Academy of Football appearances in 2020/21.
The Republic of Ireland youth international is continuing to work hard towards, in due course, adding to his inaugural two first-team appearances, which arrived in the this season’s FA Cup third and fifth rounds at Stockport County and Manchester United respectively.
His nomination for the Premier League 2 Player of the Month award marks the first such nod for a Hammer this season.
Having concluded their fixtures with a 2-2 draw against Arsenal on Friday, West Ham United U23s are awaiting the final outcome of their Premier League 2 campaign; their final league placing will hinge on the result of Monday evening’s game between Leicester City's and Liverpool's U23s.
