Members of the West Ham squad have made it crystal clear who should be their manager as Graham Potter fights to save his job, with an all-important Premier League clash at the Hill Dickinson Stadium awaiting the tactician this weekend.
Graham Potter given West Ham stay of execution
As per reliable media sources, if Potter’s side fail to impress against David Moyes’ Everton, or title-chasing Arsenal the weekend after, it is likely that David Sullivan and co will hand the 50-year-old his P45.
West Ham’s under fire board are apparently weighing up the prospect of sacking Potter after these next two rounds of fixtures, so his potential replacement could face Brentford at home on October 20 for a more favourable start to his tenure (ExWHUemployee).
Whether they pull the trigger before then could be dependent on how West Ham fare against Moyes on Merseyside, but what is certain is that results cannot continue on this downward trajectory.
Thus far, the Hammers have conceded more goals than any other side in the Premier League, with seven of their 13 goals against coming from corners.
|
Worst West Ham managers in the Premier League |
Win percentage |
|---|---|
|
9. Sam Allardyce |
30.7% |
|
10. Julen Lopetegui |
30% |
|
11. Gianfranco Zola |
27.8% |
|
12 Graham Potter |
26.1% |
|
13. Avram Grant |
18.9% |
|
via StatMuse |
|
Bar a surprise 3-0 win at Nottingham Forest prior to the last international break, West Ham have lost all of their league matches, with a stunning right-footed volley from Tyrick Mitchell gifting their last opponents, Crystal Palace, all three points in a 2-1 win at the London Stadium.
West Ham’s managerial shortlist to replace Potter is an intriguing one, with Nuno Espírito Santo, Slaven Bilic, Gary O’Neil, Marco Silva, Sean Dyche and Marco Silva all linked with the hot seat this week.
Nuno is reportedly in pole position for the West Ham job as things stand, owing to his free agent status and the excellent job he did at Nottingham Forest, with Bilic also ready to step in on a short-term basis amid reports he’s already planning his coaching staff (ExWHUemployee).
Bilic is believed to be Sullivan’s personal favourite, and is regularly in contact with the Croatian who was in charge from 2015 to 2017.
The ex-West Brom boss delivered one of West Ham’s highest ever Premier League finishes at the beginning of his tenure (7th), but according to The Telegraph, links to Bilic, or any of the aforementioned managers for that matter, are failing to impress the current Irons squad.
Senior West Ham players tell friends who should be manager
As per their information, as revealed by reliable journalist Matt Law, senior West Ham players have told friends who they think is the right man for the job.
That man is apparently Potter himself, with high-ranking squad members informing their inner circle and family members that they have full trust in West Ham’s current boss to turn things around.
Other players have also spoken about Potter in positive fashion to people outside their close circle, which follows a similar update from Sky Sports journalist Kaveh Solhekol, who previously revealed the mood around Rush Green is upbeat.
“I’m being told that the mood at the training ground is very positive,” the reporter said on a live broadcast.
“It’s calm and settled at the moment. And Potter still has significant support among the players.
“We know at any football club there’ll be a few players unhappy, but my information is that the squad are really united to get back to winning ways.”
Things can change very quickly in football. Two promising results against Everton and Arsenal could get the West Ham hierarchy thinking, especially with support for Potter among the players appearing this strong.
However, football is also a results business, and we’ve seen time and time again that the popularity of a manager counts for very little if performances on the pitch are lacklustre.
Potter faces a race against time to prove to outside critics that he is indeed the right man to take them forward, with the mood around East London as toxic as ever right now amid protests against the ownership.
