It should come as no surprise to even casual football fans when we say that West Ham have had a dismal run lately. Their 2024 season was one of their worst on record. In total, the Hammers won 11 Premier League games last year. Furthermore, they’ve won just seven of their league games so far in the 2024-2025 season. This means that the team has the potential to perform even worse this season than last season, which would be a shockingly poor turn of events.
While many fans and pundits attribute this dismal showing primarily to Julen Lopetegui’s underwhelming stint in charge, the truth is that the Hammers have been steadily declining for years. It has been a very long time since the team has had a winning season, despite the best efforts of their recent coaches. Will a new head coach manage to turn things around?
Graham Potter was announced as the Hammers’ new coach earlier this year. Potter needs no introduction, of course, and his work with Brighton & Hove Albion and Chelsea speaks for itself. He might not have a track record of turning teams into elite performers, but he does have a history of taking teams who are struggling under the weight of their losses and building them into respectable competitors. The Hammers might not immediately become a powerhouse, in other words, but given enough time, it is entirely possible that Potter will be able to work his magic and lay the foundations that are crucial for long-term success.
There are a few areas in particular where Potter might focus his attention to help elevate the Hammers and build a stronger team.
Communication
If there is one area where Potter excels, it is communication. While Lopetegui had a hard time articulating his thoughts to the media, Potter has a proven track record of giving clear, concise explanations. He has a concrete vision, in other words, which helps him take struggling teams and systematically attack their weak points. In order to turn the Hammers’ season around, Potter will need to use every bit of his communication ability to take his vision and turn it into a reality. Personally, we think that he has what it takes to do just that.
Flexibility
One of the areas where the Hammers’ last head coach struggled most was adapting to injuries and upended plays. This isn’t an uncommon issue – many teams falter when their star players are out of commission. However, top teams do not perform poorly due to the existence of injuries in their stronger players. On the contrary, the best teams band together and adapt their approach on the field to emphasise their strengths.
If Potter hopes to leave West Ham in a better position than he found it, then he must build flexibility into the team. He seems to be capable of doing just that. The Fulham game, which saw Jarrod Bowen, Michail Antonio, Niclas Füllkrug and Crysencio Summerville sidelined, is proof of that.
Simplicity
Yet another area where Potter can succeed with the Hammers is simplicity. Lopetegui introduced a lot of complex strategies to the team during his tenure, and while they may have seemed great on paper, in practice they certainly didn’t do much for their performance. Potter has a reputation for taking things back to basics and gradually adding new tools and plays to his teams’ repertoire. If he focuses on doing the same for West Ham, then we think that the team will be in a much better position by the end of the season than they have been at the start of it.
If you think that Potter will have no problem transforming the Hammers into an efficient team, you can always bet on West Ham games both present and future. There are a variety of excellent online sportsbooks to make this process easy.
What do you think about Potter being given the West Ham job? Given his past success, we’re excited to see what he will bring to the team. The Hammers, and the fans who love them, deserve better, and we can’t wait for their inevitable comeback.
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