The teenage striker could follow in Defoe’s footsteps and benefit from a lower league spell before making the grade at West Ham United.
With West Ham United enduring a damaging striker shortage earlier in the season, it seemed only a matter of time before Toni Martinez became the latest academy sensation to stamp his authority on the first-team, as reported by the Oxford Mail.
Yet, despite scoring twelve times in eleven fixtures for the club’s Under-23s, the Spanish striker was instead farmed out on loan to Oxford United in January. His superb performance, and well taken goal, in the League One side’s 3-0 thrashing of Newcastle United in the FA Cup Fourth Round only exacerbated the feeling that Slaven Bilic had missed a trick.
Though, according to the Oxford Mail, the 19-year-old could benefit long-term from honing his trade in the lower leagues.
“In League One it’s different to the FA Cup – the football is more physical,” said Martinez, who is yet to open his account in the third tier.
“I am learning with my teammates and I think I’m going to improve in the next few weeks.”
There’s every chance he could return to the London Stadium a much more rounded player at the end of the season. After all, getting kicked and collecting bruises at the cold, blustery grounds of English football’s third tier didn’t do Jermain Defoe much harm.
We all know the story by now. The Hammers hitman netted in ten consecutive games on loan at Bournemouth in 2000/01, setting a new post-war record along the way.
“He’s done great. I sent him out to Bournemouth to get some experience playing league football and he’s coped marvellously,” then West Ham boss Harry Redknapp said in quotes reported by the BBC.
The very next season, Defoe was leading the line for the senior team. It’s a long shot to expect similar results from Martinez but if there’s any club that understands the benefit of letting their next generation hone their trade elsewhere, it’s West Ham.
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