For Julen Lopetegui, this weekend’s game against Ipswich Town needs to be a much-needed turning point.
Either that, or the lurching turbulence continues.
Last Saturday, that turbulence manifested in West Ham United’s head coach and Mohammed Kudus having a frank exchange of words during half-time against Brentford. The 1-1 draw was another underwhelming performance, with Lopetegui’s playing style leaving little to be encouraged by and the result extending West Ham’s winless run.
Given the slow start to the season, the pressure is now on for tomorrow’s home match against Ipswich. This season, Lopetegui’s side have won once in the league, lost three and drawn twice. It is not what West Ham’s hierarchy would have expected given the £120million investment on nine players this summer.
Yet Lopetegui retains the board’s full support. In May he signed a two-year deal, with a one-year option, and the board believes he has abundant qualities to improve West Ham in the long-term.
It is worth mentioning that of the eight managers David Sullivan has hired since becoming co-owner in January 2010, Avram Grant, Slaven Bilic and Manuel Pellegrini are the only ones he has jettisoned midway through their contracts. How Sullivan will approach Lopetegui’s tenure if bad performances continue is yet to be seen.
Saturday is Lopetegui’s chance to show he’s the man to fix the poor start. However, Ipswich Town arrive at the London Stadium full of confidence. They are one position (15th) below West Ham (14th), but they are unbeaten in their last four games — former West Ham loanee Kalvin Phillips having played in all of them.
West Ham’s previous home fixture was an unpleasant encounter. The players were booed off the field following the 3-0 defeat by Chelsea, and they have conceded six goals since that defeat. There is disquiet among supporters for several reasons: the incident with Kudus; conceding first in five of their six league matches; the attacking struggles of Kudus, captain Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta; and Crysencio Summerville’s slow integration into the XI.
There is also the issue of Niclas Fullkrug’s delayed return from a calf injury. The 31-year-old sustained the knock while on international duty with Germany and has made just three league appearances, all as a substitute, since joining from Borussia Dortmund for £27million this summer.
“We would like Fullkrug to be fit now, but he is having little problems — they are not very important ones, but it’s true we lost him from the first international break to the second one,” said Lopetegui. “Hopefully, he is going to be ready for the next matches.”
The absence of Fullkrug is made starker by the form of West Ham’s previous transfer target Jhon Duran, who scored the winner against Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday night.
West Ham’s loan offer for the 20-year-old Aston Villa striker was rejected in January and a £30million+ offer, which included academy prospect Lewis Orford, was turned down in July. Duran’s desire was made clear when he mimicked a Hammers gesture during an Instagram live, but West Ham fell short.
Pursuing a deal for Fullkrug, who turns 32 in February, has done little for West Ham’s long-term future. For all the praise technical director Tim Steidten has received, the combined £52million spent on Fullkrug and Luis Guilherme should have been used for Duran. Having missed out on Duran, and with Fullkrug yet to get going, West Ham have only scored six league goals, five fewer than this stage last season.
Bowen and Michail Antonio have rotated the lone striker role in Fullkrug’s absence, while Guilherme is yet to play a single minute under Lopetegui since joining from Palmeiras. Bowen has registered two goals in eight appearances this season. His loss of form saw him left out of Lee Carsley’s England squad.
Lopetegui turned down interest from clubs in the Saudi Pro League and Europe to join West Ham. In his first press conference, as he sat alongside Steidten, he spoke passionately about his goals. Jack Sullivan, son of majority shareholder David, and Lopetegui’s entourage were in attendance. There was a charm and sincerity about the way he conveyed his ambitions.
But that feel-good factor has ebbed since the season opener against Aston Villa. In last week’s press conference, ahead of the 1-1 draw against Brentford, the stern look on Lopetegui’s face showed he was not best pleased about questions over his abilities.
“We are thinking how to improve the team, to be able to play better and develop our skills to win matches,” he said. “This is our work and this is the high pressure I can feel every day as a coach. I think the Premier League has 38 matches and we’ll talk in May.”
Lopetegui is under no illusions he has to sharpen up West Ham defensively and improve their offensive efficiency. He may take solace from fellow counterpart Andoni Iraola, the Bournemouth manager, also having a slow start. Iraola only won once in his first 11 games as manager after his appointment in June 2023. But his side turned it around as they went unbeaten in their next seven fixtures — winning six — and exceeded expectations to finish 12th. Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta also endured difficulties in the early stages of his managerial spell.
“They (Arteta and Iraola) were able to show what they can do,” said Lopetegui. “The most important thing in football is time to develop and be consistent. But in the meantime you have to win and we are aware of that. The only solution that I know is to work harder and to let that rub off on the players.”
Lopetegui wants fans to reserve judgement until May, but whether he will still be at the helm then is another matter.
(Top photo: Julen Lopetegui by Richard Pelham/Getty Images)
