As the old saying goes, “buy cheap, buy twice,” and in West Ham’s case, it seems that’s precisely what we are about to do.
Whether [Julen Lopetegui](https://www.claretandhugh.info/julen-lopetegui/) survives his must-win shootout against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Monday night, it’s fair to assume he will not complete his two-year Hammers contract.
With some players bordering on mutiny and having lost the faith of most of the fanbase, Lopetegui faces a huge uphill battle. The club are openly looking at candidates to replace the Spaniard, and even if he does win ‘El Sackio’ against Gary O’Neil, challenges against Bournemouth, Brighton, and Liverpool await.
Therefore, it’s reasonably safe to assume the Hammers will soon be searching for a replacement, but it would seem expectations are already being managed. Most ITKs and football insiders suggest that West Ham have no money, so they can only hire an out-of-work manager.
This is the perfect example of the “buy cheap, buy twice” philosophy, which will see the Hammers spend more on sacking and re-hiring a Lopetegui replacement than they would have by paying a compensation package for the right appointment in the first place.
I’m quite certain that Marco Silva or Andoni Iraola would transform our fortunes quickly and have us climbing the [Premier League](https://www.claretandhugh.info/premier-league-bio/), but they would cost upwards of £5m in compensation—which means we won’t do it.
It’s a bizarre trend at **West Ham**, where we recklessly spend money on unproven players in the transfer market yet value managerial appointments so much lower. The Hammers are a paradoxical football club, buying footballers from Harrods while picking managers from the reduced shelf in Aldi.
Funny how it keeps failing.