West Ham’s board have now reacted to mounting unrest surrounding Graham Potter as frustrations grow among a large number of Hammers fans.
With a huge summer looming at West Ham, pressure is already rising – and the board are facing new questions from uncertain supporters.
West Ham’s defeat to Nottingham Forest brought the curtain down on a miserable home campaign.
It meant the Hammers ended a torrid season with just five victories at the London Stadium.
Graham Potter now has only four wins in 18 matches since taking charge in January.
Many have pointed out Potter’s record so far is the worst since Avram Grant’s tenure.
Many West Ham fans have serious doubts over Potter
Significantly, Potter now cannot even match the record that resulted in Julen Lopetegui being sacked – regardless of whether the Hammers win at Ipswich in the season finale.
West Ham’s 2-0 victory at Man United has been given context by the performances and results of the worst Red Devils team for generations before and since.
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What was served up for the most part on home turf against Forest was more like what West Ham fans have come to expect over the last 18 months.
And that in itself is raising the biggest question mark about Potter among concerned supporters.
The feeling among many of the Hammers faithful is that the 49-year-old simply hasn’t been able to turn things around and get a reaction.
Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images
Photo by Steve Bardens/Getty Images
Paul Merson says West Ham is a hard job which could take five years.
Potter has a contract half that length and has pledged to implement the kind of attacking football Hammers fans crave.
But the slow, lethargic style with lots of stat-padding shot sideways and backward passes is already leaving fans bored.
The atmosphere at the London Stadium is at an all-time low and apathy has long since replaced anger in the stands.
It doesn’t bode well for season ticket sales ahead of a crucial summer window in which West Ham have made it clear they have little to no money to spend without sales.
Potter has been given grace by most West Ham fans until he has his own team in place.
West Ham board react to growing unrest around Potter
But pressure is ramping up already.
Top BBC pundit Julien Laurens says there is no future in what Potter is trying to do at West Ham.
Laurens said Diego Maradona would ‘turn in his grave’ at Potter’s tactics and slammed him for fielding nine defensive players in the final home game of the season when there was nothing to lose.
The French journalist also believes many Hammers supporters have already seen enough and want the manager replaced this summer.
One look at West Ham fan forums and social media show that he has a point.
After the poor draw at home against a Spurs reserve side two weeks ago, West Ham’s owners gave Potter their ‘100 per cent’ backing.
Now the West Ham board has reacted to growing unrest around Potter ahead of a pivotal summer.
Photo by Molly Darlington/Copa/Getty Images
Photo by Molly Darlington/Copa/Getty Images
The Hammers are fast approaching a crossroads in the club’s future.
One road could lead to the edge of a cliff, the other to redemption.
Potter’s record so far and the lack of tangible progress – coupled with the popular belief that the Premier League will be much more competitive next season – has given rise to legitimate concerns.
Goalkeeper Alphonse Areola gifted Forest the opening goal in West Ham’s latest defeat, passing the ball straight to Morgan Gibbs-White on the edge of the box.
Some have blamed Potter for insisting players stick rigidly to playing out from the back even when it’s not on or they may not have the ability to do so.
It was the same story in the last home game as Max Kilman tried to take on Matys Tel instead of clearing his lines, gifting Tottenham a very similar goal.
But the Hammers hierarchy are not concerned – saying the manager cannot take the fall for ‘stupid’ errors.
Hammers News asked West Ham’s board whether it was a fair assumption that had Potter only signed a six-month initial deal – as was originally planned – he would not be kept on this summer.
And if so is it therefore wise to back him as the man to rebuild the team.
Hammers board say Potter can’t be blamed for ‘stupidity’
It was also put to the owners that many Hammers fans simply cannot wait for the season to be over at the weekend.
The response suggests the board don’t feel Potter is to blame.
“Hopefully we get a win at Ipswich to end the season on a positive,” the top spokesman for West Ham’s owners exclusively told Hammers News.
“How can one account for stupid errors – like the one by the goalkeeper?”
That is a fair counter argument – but persistent individual errors are usually symptomatic of an issue with the tactics or coaching.
It is clear a raft of changes are needed if Potter is going to turn West Ham around next season.
That brings huge pressure on what the club has already described as a challenging window due to PSR.
Although West Ham insist it is a challenge that ‘excites’ them.