Have West Ham just dropped a clue about Xande Silva’s future?

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It feels a long time since Xande Silva scored a hat-trick against Tottenham Hotspur on his Premier League 2 debut for the Hammers.

The lucky few who witnessed Xande Silva’s first appearance in the claret and blue of West Ham United won’t forget it in a hurry.

Silva’s English football career was just days old when he ripped Tottenham Hotspur’s defence to shreds in the space of just four short minutes.

A £3.1 million signing from Vitoria Guimaraes in July 2018, a rising star in a golden generation of Portuguese youngsters channelled his inner-Robbie Fowler with a blink-and-you-miss it hat-trick for West Ham’s U23s against their bitter rivals from a few miles down Court Road.

Four more goals followed in 10 appearances for Terry Westley’s reserves. And Silva certainly made an impression on a man who believes first-team opportunities are a case of when rather than if.

“Xande did really well in his opening games – a hat-trick against Spurs, but suffered a lot of injury problems,” Westley told Claret and Hugh of Silva, who made his senior West Ham bow in an FA Cup win against Birmingham in January.

“The jury is probably out a bit but he has great strength and is no mug on the ball – very comfortable and if he gets a run of games I really expect him to make his presence felt.”

Interestingly, Silva was one of just five U23 regulars who the eagle-eyed among you will have spotted in West Ham’s official team photo for the 2019/20 season.

With the Portugul U20 star currently recovering from a serious injury and left out of Manuel Pellegrini’s initial 25-man squad, at least until January, this feels like a show of faith and a reminder that Silva hasn’t be forgotten, 12 months after he announced himself to Hammers fans in the most incredible style.

Silva is 22 now and this season feels rather make-or-break. This time next year, he will be forced to fly the comfortable U23 nest, whether he is ready or not. But, if all goes to plan, Silva will be an established part of Pellegrini’s plans by then with those fitness problems in the past.