Julen Lopetegui has been brought crashing back down to earth by a new West Ham update from a reporter close to David Sullivan.
When West Ham pulled off a shock 2-0 win at Newcastle on Monday night, it came in the nick of time for Julen Lopetegui.
Guardian journalist Jacob Steinberg had claimed the Spaniard was on the brink ahead of the game.
Steinberg, who counts Hammers majority owner David Sullivan as a close contact, said Lopetegui would be sacked if West Ham lost heavily at St James’s Park.
He also claimed two defeats of any kind against the Magpies and Arsenal would see the 58-year-old axed as West Ham manager after an unlucky number 13 Premier League games.
The 2-0 victory over in-form Newcastle didn’t just save Lopetegui, though.
It changed the whole narrative around the ex Wolves boss and West Ham’s season.
On Tuesday West Ham fans could smell the flowers and hear birds singing for the first time in a long while.
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The prospect of Europe was suddenly back on to the agenda.
In the most wide open Prem season for over a decade, West Ham are just four points off sixth despite their torrid start.
And the predicted points total needed to secure qualification this season means European football is still well within West Ham’s reach.
That’s only if Newcastle really was a turning point.
Julen Lopetegui, manager of West Ham United, during the Premier League match between Newcastle United FC and West Ham United FC at St James' Park ...
Photo by James Gill – Danehouse/Getty Images
Sullivan brings Lopetegui crashing back down to earth
For Lopetegui’s sake he’d better hope it is.
Greek philosopher Aristotle famously said ‘One swallow does not make a summer, nor one fine day’.
Well it made for a fine day at Newcastle, but the jury is out on the rest of the season.
After Newcastle, Jamie Carragher gave that saying his own Scouse twist.
Carragher warned West Ham ‘not to be kidded on’ by the sudden spike in performance amid talk Lopetegui’s job was on the line.
“If they loved him that much as a man and a manager then why haven’t they been doing that from the start,” Carragher said.
It’s a more than valid point and many Hammers fans still share Carragher’s scepticism about Lopetegui.
It seems almost ridiculous that last week reports abound replacements had been put on standby for the former Spain boss and now he’s in the clear after one win.
Well a reporter close to Sullivan has brought Lopetegui crashing back down to earth with a West Ham update.
Steinberg has revealed what the owners are now thinking.
And while there is an element of Sullivan feeling vindicated for having stuck by Lopetegui, the manager is not out of the woods yet. Far from it.
David Sullivan and Julen Lopetegui.
Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images
West Ham update from confidant shows boss not out of woods
He claims a defeat to Arsenal will then apply pressure to a run of five games the club are expecting to win.
Steinberg says it ‘should not be overlooked’ that West Ham’s owners were genuinely lining up replacements during the international break.
And that means Lopetegui’s future will be back on the agenda if the Newcastle win proves to be a false dawn.
The reporter even compared the situation to Manuel Pellegrini before his sacking by West Ham.
The Chilean was under pressure when West Ham suddenly beat Chelsea 1-0 out of nowhere.
But it was not a turning point and he was sacked a month later after losing to Leicester, who the Hammers face on Tuesday night.
“Questions remain over whether this was more than a one-off,” Steinberg reports in The Guardian.
‘Cycle of gloom will start again’
“Comparisons can be drawn to Manuel Pellegrini’s reprieve when West Ham won 1-0 at Chelsea in November 2019. That result came out of nowhere, like the one at Newcastle, but it did not do much for Pellegrini given that he departed the club a month later.
“In that context Lopetegui needs to keep his guard up…
“The situation remains precarious. Another bad run would inevitably bring more noise. Some at the club were unsure about Lopetegui’s appointment and suggested alternatives…
“He has an inviting run before Christmas and must build momentum. Otherwise the same old cycle of gloom will start up again.”
Lopetegui’s big problem now will be expectation.
Hammers fans and the owners will be expecting to win at least four of the five games after Arsenal.
But some of those games could be trickier than they look.
Like Leicester away, for example, where West Ham will be Ruud van Nistelrooy’s first opponents at the King Power after being appointed their new manager.
West Ham’s winnable run after Arsenal
Leicester, away, December 3rd.
Wolves, home, December 9th.
Bournemouth, away, December 16th.
Brighton, home, December 21st.
Southampton, away, December 26th.
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