Leicester City U18s v West Ham United U18s
U18 Premier League South, Leicester City Training Ground, Saturday 30 August 2025, 12noon BST
West Ham United U18s travel to Leicester City’s training ground on Saturday to take on the Foxes in the next round of the U18 Premier League South.
U18 Premier League Explained…
The U18 Premier League is divided into two regionalised divisions featuring all 29 Category One academies, 15 in the southern division and 14 in the northern. There are 18 clubs from the Premier League, ten from the Championship and one from League One.
Each team faces each other home and away in their respective divisions. The two regional division champions play in a National Final for the overall U18 Premier League title. The one-off tie is held at a main stadium.
Opposition...
Although Leicester City edged our U18s in an eight-goal thriller at Little Heath last season, that was West Ham’s only defeat in the last 12 league meetings, a record our new crop of U18s will be keen to extend.
The Foxes finished second from bottom in the southern division last term but still enjoyed plenty of academy successes. Scholar Jake Evans and then-U16 schoolboy Jeremy Monga both made their Premier League debuts while also featuring regularly for Leicester’s U21s in Premier League 2.
This season, the young Foxes opened with a narrow defeat to early leaders Fulham before recording a 3-1 win away at Premier League Cup finalists Reading. They also began their Premier League Cup campaign with a 3-2 loss away at Newcastle United.
Ones To Watch...
Taking on a more senior role in Lauris Coggin’s U18s, second-year scholar Andre Dike opened his account for the new season with a hat-trick last time out in the young Hammers’ 3-1 win over Sunderland in the Premier League Cup.
A talented winger who excels with his crossing and arriving in the box, Dike has also represented England at U16s and U17s level. In fact, his record with the Young Lions is flawless, undefeated in the ten games he’s featured in, winning nine and scoring three goals.
For Leicester City, captain Lorenz Hutchinson continues to catch the eye with his goalscoring. Part of the squad of U16s that beat Manchester City in the Premier League Cup final in 2024, that season the young striker scored a remarkable 41 goals and made 14 assists in 29 games.
With many of their U18s playing up last season, including the likes of Jeremy Monga and Jake Evans who both made their Premier League debuts as well as representing the U21s, Hutchinson was a bright light in a struggling Leicester side. In the last ten games of the season, Hutchinson scored ten goals in 12 games including a hat-trick at Little Heath the last time the two sides faced each other. The Foxes captain has carried that goalscoring form into this season too, on the scoresheet in Leicester’s last two games against Reading and Newcastle United.
The Story So Far…
Our U18s had a busy pre-season schedule, which included trips to York and Prague. During that period, they played seven matches in total, registering wins over Leeds United, Salford City and Northampton Town, draws against Liverpool and NEXTGEN CUP winners FC Midtjylland U19s, while falling to narrow defeats against SK Slavia Praha U19s and Rangers U19s.
Lauris Coggin's U18s have since kicked off their competitive campaign in Premier League South with a defeat to last season’s runners-up Southampton and a draw to newcomers Birmingham City.
In the Premier League Cup, the young Hammers, who are defending champions having won the 2025 edition, opened their account with a 3-1 victory over Sunderland thanks to an Andre Dike hat-trick.
