West Ham assistant coach Alan Irvine was completely satisfied with the performance of Anglo-Nigerian defender Ajibola Alese on his competitive debut in the 5-1 rout of League One side Hull City in the third round of the Carabao Cup on Tuesday evening.

The former England U16 captain looked composed and comfortable when he had the ball at his feet, justifying his manager's faith in him.

If not for Mallik Wilks' goal in the 70th minute, West Ham would have posted a cleansheet with Alese partnering Fabian Balbuena in the heart of defence.

Assessing the performances of teenage defenders Alese and Harrison Ashby, Irvine told reporters post-match : "They were absolutely brilliant, performed at a really high level from start to finish.

"Obviously for Harrison his finish was a shame having to go off but fortunately he doesn’t have a bad or serious injury which is what we were worried about.

"Absolutely delighted with them but also with how the senior players helped them through because it is really important when the young boys are coming in, two of them in the back four, it’s fantastic that the lads around them like Randolph, Balbuena and the boys in front all helped out.

"They deserve credit for that but certainly the young boys so as well, they both played extremely well."

Ajibola Alese's next target is to make West Ham's matchday squad for the first time in the Premier League.

Igho Kingsley

Photo Credit : whufc.com