Julen Lopetegui
West Ham boss Julen Lopetegui remains under huge pressure
West Ham boss Julen Lopetegui is demanding his players be ready to compete when they look to stand up to a red hot Bournemouth side on Monday night.
Bournemouth are one of the form sides in the Premier League with three successive wins to move within striking distance of the top six. Cherries head coach Andoni Iraola has already masterminded wins over champions Manchester City and title hopefuls Arsenal at the Vitality Stadium this season.
Lopetegui takes his side to the south coast on the back of a much-needed home victory over Wolves – when players showed their support for team-mate Michail Antonio, who continues his recovery following a car crash. The Spanish coach knows full well West Ham cannot allow their standards to slip if they are to build some momentum themselves heading into the hectic festive schedule.
“The challenge we have ahead of us at Bournemouth is one of the more difficult stadiums you can go to, because of the kind of team they are,” Lopetegui said. “We have to be ready to face them, to show our strengths and to be ready to compete, because we know they are a team who is going to demand a lot. In my opinion they are one of the best teams at home in the league.”
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A 2-1 win over old club Wolves was just what Lopetegui needed after successive defeats by Arsenal and then at Leicester again raised questions over the direction of his side and indeed his own position.
The former Spain and Real Madrid boss, though, remains determined to look forward.
“We are trying to be more consistent,” Lopetegui said. "In the last match, I think we did good things, but as ever there are things we need to improve – and that is the case defensively going into the Bournemouth fixture.
“Consistency is always important, but the score of the last match is not important for what happens in the next one.
“Wolves and the other games have happened, so now we are looking at the next challenge. We are making sure that we will have a strong team there, ready to compete.”
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