Julen Lopetegui’s time at West Ham United hasn’t gone precisely to plan, taking on from David Moyes this summer season, and aiming to rework the Hammers from a counter-attacking facet, right into a extra control-based, possession-heavy crew.
West Ham sit 14th within the Premier League after 14 video games performed, profitable 4 instances, drawing three, and dropping seven already this season.
Lopetegui’s facet are averaging 46.4% possession, the eighth lowest whole within the division, are taking 14.7 pictures per recreation (sixth highest), and are conceding 15.8 pictures per recreation (4th most).
Lopetegui’s future appears to be in bother, as West Ham are already drawing up shortlists of recent candidates to take over from the 58-year-old Spanish coach, one in all which has been out of a job for the reason that 2022/23 season.
Graham Potter to West Ham
In response to journalist Ben Jacobs, one identify on the West Ham supervisor shortlist is Graham Potter, who was sacked by Chelsea within the 2022/23 season, having solely taken cost of 31 video games as supervisor, averaging 1.42 factors per match.
The English coach had Chelsea averaging round 58.8% possession, taking 12.7 pictures per recreation (solely scoring 38 objectives that season), and conceding 11.5 pictures per recreation.
While the numbers weren’t horrible, their league place was, ending twelfth that marketing campaign after sacking Potter, making an attempt to navigate turbulent instances below new possession.
Whereas he’s nonetheless thought-about a high supervisor, and is clearly taking his time to select the suitable job earlier than leaping again in, the one concern that might be had round Potter is the very fact he hasn’t had a job since that robust Chelsea time, and the way he’ll bounce again from it.
However maybe the most effective identify on the quick record is not really Potter however as an alternative is Sergio Conceicao, probably the most skilled of the three names mentioned by the Hammers board, and an possibility that would deliver actual stability to the membership in a season of wrestle.
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How Sergio Conceicao compares to Graham Potter
Possessing a model of “heavy metallic” soccer within the phrases of scout Antonio Mango, Conceicao might effectively be the proper supervisor for West Ham, being adaptable – very like Potter – in his means to go from a control-based 4-2-3-1, right into a deeper 4-4-2 block, and alter recreation plans based mostly on the opposition and scoreline in a recreation.
It is a enormous think about such a aggressive league, particularly for a membership like West Ham, who’ve a squad able to controlling video games towards the underside half of the desk, however maybe want a unique strategy when dealing with top-half sides, who possess barely extra on-ball high quality. That was significantly evident when the Irons had been dispatched 5-2 by Arsenal just a few days in the past.
Sergio Conceicao supervisor profile | ||
|---|---|---|
Membership | Matches | Factors per match |
Olhanense | 34 | 1.26 |
Coimbra | 39 | 1.28 |
SC Braga | 45 | 1.80 |
Vitoria Guimaraes | 31 | 1.10 |
FC Nantes | 26 | 1.69 |
FC Porto | 368 | 2.29 |
Stats taken from Transfermarkt | ||
Conceicao’s finest interval was clearly at FC Porto, managing there from 2017-2024, profitable three Primeira Liga titles (2017/18, 2019/20 and 2021/22), 4 Taca de Portugal’s (2019/20, 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24), one Taca da Liga (2022/23), and three Supertaca Candido de Oliveira’s.
Throughout the 2023/24 season, Porto averaged 63.6% possession (probably the most of their division), and solely conceded 8.3 pictures per recreation (the 2nd fewest of their division), displaying Conceicao’s means to educate a defensive unit and management video games with extra of the ball, two components West Ham want to enhance upon since transferring on from Moyes. These numbers are additionally much better than those achieved by Potter when he was at Stamford Bridge.
With Lopetegui’s struggles already this season, West Ham want to make sure this subsequent appointment can present stability to their present squad and drag them away from the relegation zone.
Conceicao appears the most effective match to do that, bringing additional defensive stability in comparison with Potter, and subsequently making him the perfect appointment for the Hammers.
Associated
West Ham dud might have price Lopetegui his job after a 4/10 efficiency
West Ham fell to yet one more defeat within the Premier League final evening.
