Clyde Best is delighted to see his former club West Ham United participating in the Bermuda Triangle Cup this week.

The English Premier League outfit will be represented by their Academy team in the six-day tournament, which kicks off at the National Sports Centre on Tuesday with a game between Somerset Trojans and a Bermuda under-15 academy side at 5pm.

“For us and me personally, it's good for our club to come here and showcase their talents at such a young age,” Best told The Royal Gazette.

“We are talking about players under 16 years old who are probably going to be playing against guys aged 18 to 20 and you are going to be able to tell the difference.

“The players at that age normally coming from West Ham are very gifted and talented, so they will have all the basic techniques down to a tee because that’s the way they are brought up.

“All I can say to our young players is take advantage of the opportunity and use it as progression for yourself.

“If you're playing against them don't be afraid of them; they are human just like you. Go out and do what you have to do, those that have aspirations of trying to put on a showcase.

“If they are good enough and they like you, they will take you with them. So it’s a wonderful opportunity for our players, but it's also a pleasure for my former club to send their academy team here to play in the tournament.”

Charlotte FC Academy and Seedorf Select, who are also based in Britain, are the remaining foreign teams participating in the Bermuda Triangle Cup organised by Bermuda Sports International.

The popular tournament provides local players with exposure to international competition in their own backyard as well as an opportunity to impress visiting scouts from overseas professional teams on the lookout for potential talent.

With scouts from Sky Bet Championship outfit Queen’s Park Rangers and West Ham attending this year’s event, Best has urged those Bermudian players harbouring professional ambitions to make the most of the opportunity to advance their careers.

“If you want something you go out and obtain it,” said Best, who scored 47 goals in 186 appearances for West Ham between 1968 and 1976.

“When they told me I had to go to England, that's what I was looking forward to doing

“I knew I wasn’t going to come back because I was going to put on a show to make them like me, so that's what you have to do.

“You have to put your best foot forward if that's what you want. Your parents can’t want it for you, you have to want it for yourself.”

Bermuda will be represented by Best’s former club Somerset Trojans as well as the under-20, under-17 and under-15 national academies and a Bermuda select in the tournament to run from Tuesday to Sunday.

In addition to the matches, other players and coaches will have an opportunity to benefit from the tournament with special events such as a raffle drawing to be held at the semi-final games for various items from Charlotte FC.

Players not participating in the tournament can register for a skills clinic run by West Ham and Charlotte FC coaches to be held at North Field, National Sports Centre, on July 25.

There will also be a “Coaching for Success” panel run by West Ham and Charlotte FC coaches for local football coaches at the Clyde Best Centre of Excellence on July 27.