West Ham United have something of a lucky charm in their U23s.
Goalkeeper Joseph Anang has made 17 appearances for the U23s this season and has never once been on the losing side, per FBref.
And one has to feel that he is in a prime position to make the jump to the senior squad.
Across his 17 appearances, the 19-year-old has been in impressive form, keeping eight clean sheets and conceding just 18 goals.
West Ham’s U23 team are currently sitting top of the Premier League 2 Division Two, and have yet to lose. They are three points clear of Manchester United with 18 games played.
The game Anang missed came against Reading, a 3-3 draw, after he was sent off for two yellow cards against United, in a game West Ham won 2-0.
An England U20 international, one has to think that David Moyes will be keeping a close eye on Anang as the summer approaches, given the crisis the Hammers have endured when it comes to their goalkeepers this season.
They started the season with Lukasz Fabianski between the posts but an injury put paid to his time in the team and led to summer signing Roberto being introduced by Manuel Pellegrini.
The Spaniard, amazingly, failed to keep a single clean sheet in eight Premier League games, conceding 17 goals along the way and failing to be on the winning side once. West Ham lost all but two of the games he played in, drawing with AFC Bournemouth and Everton.
Subsequently, Roberto was loaned out to Alaves in January – which pretty much tells all about how disastrous his West Ham stint has been.
David Martin didn’t fare much better, though he did manage to keep two clean sheets, most notably against Chelsea in a 1-0 win. However, across five games in which he played, the Hammers won two, also beating Southampton, and lost to Wolves, Arsenal, and Sheffield United – with Martin committing a clanger against the latter.
West Ham’s goalkeeping problems got so bad that they re-signed Darren Randolph in January, meaning they have been compelled to sign three goalkeepers in the last two transfer windows, two of which appear to be well below the level required.
Did he really play for us?! No West Ham fan has managed to name all of these obscure Irons signings….
But one has to think that Anang could potentially do a better job than both Martin and Roberto if he were promoted to the first-team this summer as third-choice, only called upon when needed or when the occasion allows for him to gain some experience at low risk.
Perhaps it’s a gamble, considering Anang hasn’t even enjoyed a loan spell elsewhere just yet, but it surely makes more sense than West Ham signing a fourth goalkeeper in a calendar year, especially bearing in mind all the costs that could come with it.
Indeed, Anang could solve a big problem for Moyes and allow the Irons to keep some cash in the coffers to spend on other positions.
Meanwhile, West Ham need to swerve a move for this Manchester United man!