West Ham sacked manager Julen Lopetegui after six months in charge, after losing nine and winning six in the first 20 games of the Premier League season.
The Hammers had a net spend of £85.2m in the summer but are now 14th, seven points above the relegation zone, after Saturday’s 4-1 defeat at Manchester City.
“The first half of the 2024/25 season is not in line with the club’s ambitions,” West Ham said in a statement, adding that it had acted to achieve its “targets”.
They lost 5-0 against Liverpool on December 29th, and their home run started with three consecutive losses at the London Stadium, and their home performance was sluggish with only one win in five games.
West Ham United today announced that head coach Julen Lopetegui has left the club.
— West Ham United (@WestHam) January 8, 2025
Will Graham Potter be the next West Ham manager?
Graham Potter is widely expected to replace Lopetegui, with the former Chelsea, Brighton & Hove Albion and Swansea City manager agreeing a two-and-a-half-year contract to manage the FA Cup third round fixture. The Athletic reported that. At Aston Villa on Friday (8pm GMT).
Englishman Potter, who is considered a heavy odds-on favorite among bookmakers, has spent three years reinventing Brighton’s style and has lifted the Seagulls to fourth place in the table after six league games in 2022/23. However, his move to Chelsea ended after less than seven games. Including 11 losses in 31 games.
The Hammers return to Premier League action at home to ninth-placed Fulham on January 14 (7.30pm) before facing 15th-placed Crystal Palace four days later (4pm).
Potter’s first league away game in charge could be at eighth-placed Villa on January 26 (4.30pm).
BREAKING: West Ham United have officially confirmed the sacking of Julen Lopetegui as head coach 🚨 pic.twitter.com/bU7uSveVEL
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) January 8, 2025
Lopetegui sacked
Lopetegui’s press conference scheduled for Wednesday was canceled before the 58-year-old could train ahead of the trip to Villa Park.
Assistant manager Pablo Sanz, head of performance Oscar Caro, head analyst Juan Vicente Peinado, fitness coach Borja de Alba and technical coach Edu Rubio have also joined West Ham. Gone.
The Spaniard, who has previously managed Spain, Real Madrid, Porto, Wolves and Sevilla, was appointed as David Moyes’ successor in May but immediately came under pressure.
Moyes won West Ham’s first European trophy since 1965 by winning the Conference League in 2022/23 as part of his second spell in charge, which lasted four-and-a-half years.
