West Ham United defender Ben Johnson is delighted for Conor Coventry over his preseason form.
Coventry has impressed manager David Moyes this summer.
Johnson told whufc.com: "At the end of last season, there was just myself and Dec (Declan Rice) and obviously Nobes (Mark Noble) in the first-team squad who had come through the Academy, so having another one around and it being a close buddy is just great!
"Conor is someone who understands what it is to come through the ranks at this Club and he's someone I can talk to about our shared experiences.
"He's a top lad and a top player. He's hard working and he's going to give you everything and sometimes you don't find players who have both the technical ability and that work ethic. Conor wears his heart on his sleeve and everyone can see that.
"One word that comes to mind when I think of him is 'perseverance'. First-team football doesn't come easy and there are so many ups and downs in a career, so he's done really well.
"He's a great guy, we get along really well. We live close together, we go to the gym together, have lunch together, go out together and have done a lot of things together. People at the training ground say we're like brothers!
"We've played together for eleven years now and it's just lovely to be playing alongside one another now. Overall, he's just a great guy, a top player and it's just great to see him doing well."