Recently, we learned via The Athletic that West Ham will pay no compensation to Nuno Espírito Santo if they are relegated at the end of the season.
What wasn’t revealed is that the clause is thought to be mutual, allowing the 52-year-old to walk away from his West Ham contract for his own convenience if the Hammers drop down a division. One of the reasons for this mutual clause is that Nuno faces a 50% drop in wages, like his players, meaning his annual wage packet would fall from £4.5m to £2.25m per season.
West Ham is thought to still be paying Julen Lopetegui on the payroll until the end of his two-year contract in June 2026.
He was reported to be earning £3.5m per year and around £7m over the life of his contract.
[Lopetegui](https://www.claretandhugh.info/julen-lopetegui/) was appointed head coach of the Qatar national team last May for around £2m per year, meaning West Ham would be obliged to pay him the difference of around £1.5m or £125,000 per month. Clubs often agree to pay former managers monthly on the payroll for the remainder of their contract instead of paying them off in a lump sum.
Graham Potter was thought to be on £5m per year at West Ham. He signed a two-and-a-half-year contract in January last year, which won’t expire until June 2027.
He is also believed to remain on the monthly payroll despite taking a job as Sweden’s national head coach on a small salary of around £500,000 per year.
The last national coach, Janne Andersson, earned 4,420,300 SEK in 2022, which is equilent £327,000 per year or £6,288 per week.
Again, West Ham is legally obliged to make up the difference until the end of his contract in 2027.
It means that West Ham is likely to have three managers currently on the payroll, costing the club around £10.5m per season or £875,000 each month.