Another Premier League manager sacked at Liverpool and Everton rivals as snubbed England candidate linked

While Liverpool and Everton continue their respective Premier League missions, another rival club has announced the departure of their manager. Following the dismissals of the likes of Erik ten Hag at Manchester United and Steve Cooper at Leicester City already this season, West Ham have now sacked Julen Lopetegui.

The Irons are currently 14th in the Premier League table and have shipped nine goals in their last two league fixtures. Their latest 4-1 slump to Manchester City followed a hefty 5-0 loss to Liverpool, marking their ninth defeat of the season. West Ham have also conceded the second-highest amount of goals this term with 39 — only relegation-threatened Wolves have let in more at this point.

The Hammers’ latest run of frustrating form leaves them just seven points above the bottom three. Lopetegui took charge of Wednesday’s training session and was relieved of his duties afterwards. The 58-year-old replaced David Moyes as West Ham manager last May, after leaving Wolves by mutual consent.

With doubts surrounding Lopetegui for a while, West Ham previously postponed their scheduled press conference due to take place ahead of their FA Cup clash with Aston Villa on Friday.

Julen Lopetegui sacked by West Ham

Lopetegui leaves West Ham after less than eight months in charge. The club released a statement on Wednesday to confirm the news.

“The first half of the 2024/25 season has not aligned with the Club’s ambitions and the Club has therefore taken action in line with its objectives. The Club can confirm that Assistant Head Coach Pablo Sanz, Head of Performance Oscar Caro, Head Analyst Juan Vicente Peinado, Fitness Coach Borja De Alba and Technical Coach Edu Rubio have also left with immediate effect.”

Graham Potter has been highlighted as the main man in the picture to take over the reins at the London Stadium. Talks are now reportedly progressing between the club and the former Chelsea boss, who has been out of a role since April 2023.

The Athletic has reported that West Ham are moving forward in their conversation to appoint Potter within the next 24 hours.

Graham Potter set for West Ham job

Potter confirmed over the summer that he was ready to return to football management, having been linked with the formerly vacant England national team job. Before the appointment of Thomas Tuchel, Potter’s name was heavily linked with the role following Gareth Southgate’s decision to resign after Euro 2024.

The FA ‘settled’ on Tuchel after it became clear that first choice Pep Guardiola would not leave Manchester City midseason. Potter was also dismissed as a candidate, alongside other homegrown options, as the FA ‘did not believe there was a stellar English option’ available to the, according to the Manchester Evening News.

Potter was sacked by Chelsea after less than seven months in charge after recording 11 defeats in 31 games since his arrival. The Blues dropped to 11th in the Premier League, 12 points adrift of the top four, despite spending in excess of £550 million on new signings that season.