Potter set for Premier League return as West Ham sack Lopetegui

Tom Weber

Updated: 6 Jan 2025 19:19 GMT
3 min read

Julen Lopetegui is set to be sacked by West Ham, with former Chelsea boss Graham Potter the favourite to replace him.

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It has been a dire campaign for the Hammers and head coach Lopetegui is now paying for it with his job. It was supposed to be a season of evolution for West Ham following the departure of David Moyes, but it quickly turned into one of regression.

An eye-watering €144 million was spent on new signings in the summer, with director Tim Steidten hailed for his smart acquisitions at the time. However, the German got perhaps the most important aspect of the equation wrong: the coach.

Lopetegui arrived as more of a stopgap solution rather than a long-term project manager and to say that he failed to have much of a positive impact would be an understatement.

West Ham languish in 14th in the standings and talkSPORT now reports that West Ham have decided to sack the Spaniard.

Potter to replace Lopetegui

The Hammers have been linked with potential replacements for Lopetegui for weeks, with Steidten's compatriot Matthias Jaissle of Al-Ahli said to be one of the names under consideration.

However, it seems that the favourite for the vacancy is now Graham Potter, who has been out of a job for almost two years since his sacking by Chelsea in April 2025.

A few months ago, the 49-year-old revealed that he was keen to get back into the game and Ben Jacobs reports that Potter is prepared to take the West Ham role on an initial short-term basis.

In the summer, Potter rejected an approach from Dutch giants Ajax but he now appears to be on the verge of returning to the dugout for the first time since his nightmare spell at Stamford Bridge.