Julen Lopetegui is clearly in no mood to take all the blame for West Ham’s current predicament after he made a bold new demand of the club’s owners.
One might think Julen Lopetegui would be very sheepish at West Ham right now.
Speculation is once again swirling over his future after a chastening 4-1 defeat to West Ham’s biggest Premier League rivals Spurs.
There is indiscipline in the Hammers camp. As a result Lopetegui has lost his best player for what is now likely to be six games.
Tactics and team selections have been questioned by underwhelmed fans who have left several games early in their thousands.
And it’s just the small matter of a rejuvenated Man United up next.
Despite all that, Lopetegui started the week by urging the owners to judge him in May.
David Sullivan’s response was to put Edin Terzic on standby to take over unless results and performances improve.
There is an added layer of frustration around West Ham relating to the striker situation.
West Ham have once again got it all wrong on the striker front.
Despite having technical director Tim Steidten in charge of transfers, the Hammers have been left relying on ageing duo Michail Antonio and Danny Ings in the wake of Niclas Fullkrug’s all too inevitable injury.
Fans raised red flags about the Fullkrug signing given his age, lack of pace and injury history.
But Steidten and Lopetegui pressed ahead with the £23.5m deal anyway.
Fullkrug has been out for six weeks and has no return date.
His injury is believed to be the same suffered by a top NFL star who has been out for three months with no return in sight.
Despite overseeing just two Premier League wins so far and news emerging that his potential replacement allegedly being lined up, West Ham’s head coach is being as bullish as he is shameless.
Because Lopetegui has taken a big risk with a bold new demand of West Ham’s owners.
According to journalist Alex Crook Lopetegui is not happy at having to rely on Antonio up front.
Crook claims the Spaniard is ‘putting pressure on the West Ham hierarchy’ to sign a striker as soon as the January window opens.
So much so he’s made his own recommendation – Greek forward Fotis Ioannidis who was on his shortlist before the Hammers signed Fullkrug in the summer.
“West Ham are searching the market for a new No.9 due to growing concerns over the fitness of summer signing Niclas Fullkrug,” Crook said on talkSPORT.
“It’s raised question marks over the wisdom of technical director Tim Steidten’s decision to buy a 31-year-old with a poor injury history, despite being praised for his performances at Euro 2024…
“In Fullkrug’s absence, Michail Antonio has led the line up front, but manager Julen Lopetegui does not see the Jamaican as a long-term solution, and is putting pressure on the hierarchy to dip into their pockets in January.
“One potential target is Panathinaikos front-man Fotis Ioannidis, who was on the Hammers’ shortlist in the summer.”
Lopetegui clearly has a brass neck.
The owners would have been well aware of that given Lopetegui walked out on Wolves in a huff over transfers last summer.
Ioannidis is a promising 34-year-old forward with a good record in Greek football.
He brings more to the team than just scoring goals and is starting to make an impact at international level too.
Ioannidis’ physicality and tactical awareness are his key attributes. He has a goal record of around one in every three for Panathinaikos and Greece.
Related Posts