West Ham United take on Newcastle United this time next week in the Premier League, and Julen Lopetegui is in desperate need of a result.
Julen Lopetegui finds himself under real pressure in his role as West Ham head coach right now, and a heavy defeat to Newcastle next week could spell the end of his time in charge at the London Stadium.
The performances and results have been really poor this season, and there is said to be friction behind the scenes between Lopetegui and Tim Steidten.
The Hammers head coach has failed to get his summer signings to gel just yet, and his lack of charisma has prevented the West Ham fans from warming to him.
Steidten was apparently set for crunch talks with Hammers co-owner David Sullivan this week regarding Lopetegui’s future, but that has since been denied by club insiders.
Nonetheless, it’s still clear and obvious to see that Lopetegui doesn’t have many chances left to impress his employers.
Heavy defeats against Newcastle and Arsenal in our next two games may well see Lopetegui moved on from the London Stadium.
Both matches will be incredibly difficult, there’s no denying that, but as far as I’m concerned, Lopetegui has just been given a really big boost after the best possible news ahead of the crucial double-header.
Best news for Julen Lopetegui and West Ham ahead of Newcastle
The Hammers are all set to travel up to St James’ Park to take on the Magpies on Monday Night Football next week.
A win, or even a draw and a really positive performance could turn our season around in a big way.
What the Hammers absolutely cannot afford to do is lose heavily. That really would be a disaster, with a home game against Arsenal lying just around the corner.
So with that in mind, something that happened last night will serve as a huge boost for West Ham heading into those two games.
Jarrod Bowen scored his first ever goal for England against Ireland at Wembley Stadium, and he’ll be absolutely buzzing with confidence right now.
That’s great news for us, as we need him back to his very best as soon as possible.
Bowen spoke to reporters after the game and admitted just how happy he was to have finally broken his duck for the national team.
The former Hull City star has been nowhere near his best for the Hammers this season. Whether that’s because he’s struggling with the extra responsibility of being the club captain isn’t clear.
However, I’m certain that we’re now set to see the very best of the 27-year-old forward in the Claret and Blue.
Jarrod Bowen will blow up for West Ham now
It has to be said that the Hammers skipper hasn’t hit the heights of last season so far this term.
Last season, Bowen bagged 20 goals and 10 assists for West Ham, but he has just four goals and two assists to his name so far this term.
In fairness to Jarrod, he has been moved between his favoured right wing position and the centre-forward role throughout the course of the 2024/25 campaign.
It will be crucial for Lopetegui to keep Jarrod Bowen out wide right going forward from now on out.
The left-footed attacker is so much better cutting inside from the flank, when he can get a shot off or assist one of his teammates.
He sometimes gets swallowed up by the opposing central defenders when playing through the middle due to his lack of height.
I’m hoping that Bowen’s exploits for England against Ireland will give him the confidence boost he needs to really catch fire for West Ham now, and that’s great news for Julen Lopetegui ahead of the crunch clash with Newcastle.
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