The career of West Ham defensive prodigy Reece Oxford hasn’t quite gone as many had expected.
The 18-year-old was tipped for greatness after unveiling his enormous talents to the world on his Hammers EPL debut – a 2-nil victory over Arsenal in the 2015-16 curtain raiser.
Oxford played a further 6 times in the league that season, and much hasn’t been seen or heard of him on the big stage since.
A half-season loan at Reading the last term didn’t go down as expected, with the West Ham starlet playing just 5 Championship games.
The club felt a change in scenery could help out, and Oxford, a truly promising defender cum defensive midfielder, was sent on a season-long loan to Borussia Mönchengladbach during the summer transfer.
For reasons best known to the Bundesliga outfit, the teenager failed to make any appearance since joining in June, prompting West Ham to cut short the deal on Friday.
Oxford has not played for the Hammers for more than a year, and from his disappointing loan spells, it could be safe to say he’s not quite ready for the big stage yet.
The England youth international is no doubt a great potential, and it’s why the top EPL sides once wanted to lure him away from the London side.
Oxford will be ready for selection for West Ham by January, and he could be sent on another loan by then.
The centre-back will link up with the youth team to play in the Premier League 2 until then, but it appears his development has been rushed, and he simply couldn’t meet with such lofty demands.
The future remains bright for Reece Oxford, but the kid must be allowed to grow at a pace he’s able to cope with.
Not all football prodigies can turn out big overnight, and the earlier West Ham recognize this, the better.
