Two leading West Ham journalists have piled the pressure on West Ham’s owners to sack Julen Lopetegui after the 5-0 defeat to Liverpool.
West Ham fans are calling for Julen Lopetegui’s head once more after watching their team be annihilated by Liverpool at the London Stadium.
The chastening reality for the Hammers is that the scoreline could and should have been far worse.
The Reds racked up 22 shots at West Ham’s goal – 13 of them on target.
West Ham fans booed the team off at half-time.
There wasn’t enough of them left to do the same at the final whistle.
And the fact that that fans leaving en masses before full-time has become a recurring theme under Lopetegui tells its own sorry story.
Only three teams have conceded more than wide open West Ham’s 35 this season.
They are Southampton (39), Leicester and Wolves (both 42).
Hammers fans demand Lopetegui sacking after latest annihilation
The Hammers started the season with hopes and aims of qualifying for Europe.
Indeed Lopetegui’s initial two-year contract is built around that with a third year triggered should the Irons make it into any UEFA competition.
After a £155m spend on nine new signings, the expectation was to at least compete for a place.
In West Ham’s favour has been the fact this is the most wide open Premier League season for 12 years.
That makes it all the more frustrating that Lopetegui and his side are falling woefully short in all aspects.
It is not lost on fans that Lopetegui has been extremely fortunate to go unbeaten in the last four games.
West Ham were lucky not to lose all four matches against Wolves, Bournemouth, Brighton and Southampton let alone pick up eight points.
Fans are calling for Lopetegui to be fired after the Liverpool defeat.
Prominent figures such as Jamie Carragher and Henry Winter have also left David Sullivan nowhere to hide with strong views on the situation.
Now two leading Hammers journalists have added to the calls for the Hammers to act.
Scathing Steinberg and Rosser pile pressure on West Ham to sack Lopetegui
Scathing Jacob Steinberg and Jack Rosser pile the pressure on West Ham to sack Lopetegui.
Sun reporter Rosser warned West Ham’s owners the football club killer that is apathy is now setting in at the London Stadium.
What he compared the atmosphere to was truly damning.
“West Ham fans not even venting anger, just silent,” Rosser said.
“It was louder than this during the pandemic.”
Steinberg went even stronger, labelling West Ham an ’embarrassment’.
The Guardian journalist says West Ham’s attempts to move on from David Moyes have been ‘utterly ludicrous’.
He also questioned how many humiliations the Hammers will have to suffer before Lopetegui is sacked.
“Embarrassing again,” Steinberg said of West Ham’s performance against Liverpool.
“How many humiliations in half a season does one manager get away with?
“Beyond acceptable, even if Liverpool brilliant. Barely competing. And West Ham lucky during that four-game unbeaten run that opponents didn’t punish them.
“Like Spurs, West Ham lucky Liverpool’s finishing not better. This should be double figures. These games were competitive under Moyes. They’ve given that up for some weird botched clueless attempt at being expansive.
“Not saying Moyes should have stayed. But the attempt to move on from him has been utterly ludicrous.
“Lopetegui to get more time after last night’s debacle against Liverpool. City away in the league and Villa away in the cup next for a really poor West Ham.”
Fans, top journalists and leading pundits are not the only ones putting West Ham’s owners under pressure to wield the axe, though.
Spurs chief Daniel Levy is too.
Because Tottenham are playing a game of poker with West Ham over Graham Potter with Lopetegui and Ange Postecoglou teetering on the brink.
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