West Ham United's Under-18s boss Kevin Keen is confident the club can unearth the next Mark Noble or Declan Rice.

The Hammers' first team are not enjoying the best of seasons so far under David Moyes.

However, Keen is hoping that he can continue to evolve the club's academy to produce top talents for the first team.

The young Irons are impressing as they are 15 points clear in the Premier League U18 South division this term.

“You're always hopeful, especially at a club like West Ham, of doing well in competitions like this," Keen said, per Evening Standard.

“The last few years we haven't hit those heights, so it's been a challenge for us.

“We've got a couple of really good young players and fans might be seeing the next Declan Rice or Mark Noble, and will be able to say 'five years ago I saw that kid play in the FA Youth Cup away at Ipswich Town'.