West Ham fans were (by and large) happy when David Moyes left the club, which seemed rather strange after he delivered their first meaningful silverware for well over 40 years. The Scot also guided them to European football for three consecutive seasons for the first time in the club’s history. He took over for his second spell at the club part way through the 2019/20 campaign and guided them to safety. Then, in the four seasons that followed, the Hammers finished sixth, seventh, 14th and ninth.
But the fans were happy to see him go. As Italian singer Gala Rizzatto – just Gala to you and me – sang, “People just want more and more”. No matter that Moyes had brought the club a record run in Europe, a trophy and three top-10 finishes, including their best end-of-season position since 1999. The Hammers were bigger and better than that and should have been aiming higher. Moreover, the football Moyes produced wasn’t good enough, wasn’t West Ham enough.
When the club appointed Julen Lopetegui in May 2024 to take charge of pre-season ahead of the 2024/25 campaign, many West Ham supporters were happy. Out with the dour Scot and in with an en vogue Basque manager who had played for both Real Madrid and Barcelona, as well as Spain, and also managed both his national team and Real, as well as Sevilla and Porto. He even had Premier League experience, having done a reasonable job with Wolves under tough circumstances. What could go wrong?
Lopetegui Lasts Just 22 Games
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Well, quite a lot as it turns out. On the 8th of January, 2025, the hierarchy at West Ham took the decision to dispense with the services of the Basque boss after a mere six months (since he started the job and eight since his position was confirmed). He was in charge for just 22 games and managed to win seven of those, losing 10 and drawing five. The Hammers were leaky to say the least under the former Wolves manager and conceded 44 goals – an average of two per game. They were hardly expansive in attack to compensate for that though, registering 26 goals.
It had been rumoured for some time that Lopetegui’s job was under threat and the day before he was dismissed those rumours increased in intensity. Twenty-two games, including just 20 in the Premier League, is hardly time for any new boss to get their ideas across at a club but in the modern Premier League, it is far from unusual to see those in charge given such a short amount of time to prove themselves.
Things were so bad at West Ham that the club were even below Manchester United in the table! And Spurs! What hope did poor Julen have? In seriousness, the club were in 14th place in the table and with 23 points they were seven clear of the relegation zone. They were seven behind ninth-placed Fulham, and just a point adrift of Spurs, whilst they only trailed the Red Devils due to an inferior goal difference.
It was a poor start, of that there is no doubt, but with around half the season to go, there was surely time for things to improve, whilst relegation seems unlikely to be a serious concern. The owners were clearly worried by two recent defeats, Lopetegui’s men going down 4-1 at Man City last time out and 5-0 at home to Liverpool before that.
However, those are top, top teams, even allowing for City’s slump, that are capable of putting just about anyone in the division to the sword. What’s more, prior to those chastening defeats, West Ham had enjoyed their best run of the season, going four games unbeaten and collecting eight points. Wins over Wolves and Southampton put plenty of daylight between them and the strugglers at the bottom, whilst draws with Bournemouth and Brighton, both in the top half, were very credible results.
What Happened and Why Now?
West Ham have sacked head coach Julen Lopetegui after less than eight months in chargehttps://t.co/6wSiP7lqt3
— Sky News (@SkyNews) January 8, 2025
Football is, as we hear so frequently, a results business. Silly us thinking it was a sport but that is, probably, a different debate. And of course the results achieved by Lopetegui were worse than the club and the fans had hoped for. But were they really that bad? The Hammers flirted, albeit briefly, with relegation last term, before finishing up in ninth, largely thanks to an excellent run in late winter and early spring that brought 12 points from seven games.
We would suggest it wasn’t too bad, especially as the change in style he was trying to enact was a significant one. There were rumours about player unrest, and certainly he is not a manager that is easy for players or fans to take to. Another issue was the fact that he was heavily backed in the transfer window in the summer, spending around £130m.
Signed Players Unimpressive
The club paid big money for central defender, Max Kilman (over £40m for a player now 27), as well as for Crysencio Summerville from Leeds, Niclas Fullkrug, Luis Guilherme and Aaaron Wan-Bissaka. Their net spend was around £92m and in truth, none of the players Lopetegui signed have really impressed thus far.
The biggest issue though was their woeful defensive record, especially after splashing out a massive fee on Kilman. Only three clubs have conceded more goals in the PL than West Ham, all three of those in the bottom four. After the recent hammerings, clearly the club felt the situation was set to get worse, not better.
Disrupts Transfer Window
Sacking Lopetegui during the January transfer window disrupts the club’s options in terms of bringing in new players but the board clearly thought it was a decision that had to be made. Rather strangely, given he was there for just 22 games, his position seems to have been under scrutiny for months. Once again, that is the modern way, and Hammers fans are certainly some of the more demanding around, as are the owners.
Graham Potter Up Next?
As we have said, the rumour mill was turning for some time before the axe finally fell, a situation which does not make the Hammers look particularly good. There are suggestions that Graham Potter has already been sounded out about taking charge, possibly on a short-term deal initially until the end of the season. Potter was given about as long at Chelsea as Lopetegui was given by the Hammers so he at least knows what to expect. In addition, he plays the sort of football that Hammers want to see – but can get the results that would rebuild his reputation?