West Ham United academy striker Divin Mubama has opened up on his inspirations and Hammers dream after scoring his first senior goal for the club on Thursday night.
The 18-year-old, making his London Stadium debut for the Hammers, came off the bench during the Europa Conference League second leg clash against AEK Larnaca for his fourth first-team appearance, scoring just over ten minutes after coming when superbly flicking Tomas Soucek’s header into the box in for his first senior goal, having had one harshly chalked off on his full senior debut in Romania back in November.
Mubama is having a season to remember having been called up to England’s under-19s squad on Friday for their matches against Hungary, Iceland, and Turkey this month. Despite having initially struggled at the start of this season, Mubama used that debut against FCSB to kickstart his season.
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Since making his first-team debut on November 3, Mubama has scored 25 goals in his last 18 matches for the club’s under-21s and under-18s combined, including 11 goals in his last ten appearances in Premier League 2. Mubama, a Newham-born prospect, has spoken about wanting to follow in the footsteps of some of the club’s former academy graduates who have gone on to win the biggest accolades in club football.
“Everyone talks about the development that this academy does, through the likes of Jermain Defoe, Michael Carrick and Joe Cole,” said Mubama. “For me to show the boys it can be done feels good. It allows me to kick on now. This is the time of the season where things can go either way for me. I just need to stay positive.”
Mubama also opened up on the players who have inspired his journey so far and the impressive season he is currently having in a West Ham shirt.
Speaking on the players he likes to watch and take notes from, he says that Napoli’s Victor Osimhen and Manchester City striker Erling Haaland are both players he watches a lot, as well as old footage of Sergio Aguerd, a serial Premier League winner from his time at City.
“I like to take and tweak different things,” Mubama explained. “I’ve been watching Osimhen and Haaland a lot. I just try and take little things. I watch a lot of Aguero coming into pockets late.”
A first senior goal for Mubama was made even more special by the fact that he lives just 15 minutes away from the London Stadium, with his whole family in attendance for the game.
First joining West Ham at the age of seven, the teenage prodigy admits it was a special night for him.
“I only live like 15 minutes from here,” added Mubama. “I’ve got my whole family here and the feeling was unreal. I can’t describe it.”
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