If indeed Nuno Espirito Santo does leave West Ham United in the coming days – as is expected – who would you want to replace him?
That is the question we at Hammers News put to our TalkingPoint users in the aftermath of Sunday’s relegation.
And while Scott Parker is the name on everyone’s lips right now – a three-time West Ham United Player of the Year with a trio of Championship promotions on his CV – the former Burnley boss is perhaps not the clear favourite some are describing him as.
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Craig Bellamy is a popular name among an apparently growing section of the Hammers fanbase.
At the time of writing, with around 700 votes on our poll, you could slide a piece of cigarette paper between Parker and Bellamy at the summit.
West Ham United in the market for a new manager as Nuno Espirito Santo nears the exit
Team-mates at Upton Park between 2009 and 2011, both Parker and Bellamy have over 230 votes apiece.
The latter may lack the former’s exceptional Championship CV – Stuart Pearce feels Parker is a ‘really good’ candidate having taken Burnley, Bournemouth and Fulham out of the second tier – but Bellamy has made quite a name for himself with the Welsh national team.
Wedded to an attractive, high-pressing brand of football, and a much more mature, well-spoken manager than he was a player, many feel that Bellamy has the character and the potential, if not the experience at this level.
Slaven Bilic an outsider despite David Sullivan’s admiration
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At the time of writing, another former West Ham favourite comes in at third.
Slaven Bilic was David Sullivan’s preferred choice to replace Graham Potter in the Autumn. Now that Karren Brady has departed – she pushed for Nuno – Bilic may yet emerge as a frontrunner.
Yet, while Parker guided Burnley to a 99-point haul as recently as 2025, Bilic has not coached on UK soil since earning promotion with West Brom six years ago. He hasn’t coached at all since being sacked by Saudi Arabian outfit Al-Fateh in 2024.
We threw Sean Dyche’s name into the mix, too, yet the votes show he is a distant fourth.
Gary O’Neil has been linked despite his contract at Strasbourg while other names may appear in the media in the coming days.
Former Southampton coach Russell Martin, another with a track record of getting teams out of the Championship, would clearly not be a popular choice.
He receives over 200 votes fewer than both Parker and Bellamy.
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