Exclusive: Graham Potter to give West Ham academy stars a first-team chance next season | OneFootball

Young midfielders handed chance to impress in pre-season as Potter integrates pair into first-team squad

West Ham are unlikely to consider loan offers for academy graduates Freddie Potts and George Earthy as Graham Potter looks to integrate the pair into his squad next season.

Potts, 21, made 37 appearances for Portsmouth, scoring one and assisting four goals.

Freddie Potts impressed for Portsmouth last season

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The defensive midfielder, who has made three first-team appearances for West Ham, signed a contract extension in March keeping him at the club until 2029.

Earthy, 20, enjoyed a similarly promising loan at Bristol City, where he made 40 appearances, including two starts against Sheffield United in the play-off semi-finals.

Potts and Earthy have travelled with the first-team squad to Germany for a week-long training camp and will also be involved in the Premier League Summer Series in America in July.

George Earthy helped Bristol City to the Championship play-offs last season

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Fellow academy graduates Lewis Orford, 19, and Kaelan Casey, 20, have also been involved in pre-season, and the club are lining up loan moves for the pair in the hopes they will follow in the footsteps of Potts and Earthy.

West Ham will be active in the market and are close to sealing a deal for Slavia Prague left-back El Hadji Malick Diouf, but Potter is also keen to look inwards for solutions and feels Potts and Earthy could play important roles for the Hammers next season.