West Ham have announced that 18 year old goalkeeper Finlay Herrick has signed a new deal with the Club until 2028 with the option of an additional year.

Herrick is a graduate of the Academy of Football and first trained with the Hammers as a six year old. He has quickly become one of the brightest young goalkeeping talents in English football. At youth level, Herrick has had plenty of success winning the FA Youth Cup as well as the U18 Premier League South in the 2022/23 season.

The 18 year old is continuing to take positive strides in his development, he has made debuts for both the Hammers U21 side as well as England U19’s and he has also trained regularly with the Club’s first team squad.

The young keeper has featured in all six PL2 matches for West Ham’s U21 side so far this season and has kept three clean sheets. Having signed his new contract with the Club, speaking to the Club’s official website, Herrick discussed how he is looking forward to the next few years of his development with West Ham.

“It’s hard to put into words what this new contract means to me. I’ve been here since I was six years old and to put pen to paper once again at this great Club is such an incredible feeling. West Ham have moulded me into the player and man I am today, and I am forever grateful to this Club.” said Herrick.

Discussing his ambitions and what is next for him in his career, Herrick went on to say: “To keep playing games with the U21s and to stay around the first team is the ultimate goal. Hopefully in the next few years I can get the chance to show what I can do.”

West Ham’s Sporting Director Mark Noble has been aware of Herrick and his potential for quite some time. Noble has high hopes for the 18 year old and was delighted the Club were able to tie him down to a new deal: “I’ve seen Finlay come through as a young boy, and I know he’s one of the best goalkeepers in his age group.” said Noble.

The former Hammers captain went on to add: “I know Xavi (Valero) our goalkeeping coach thinks really highly of Finlay, and it was one of our big objectives to get him signed up on a longer term contract. We really, really like him here, and that’s why we’ve given him a new contract.”