With club football taking a back seat during the international break, it is quite remarkable that three former West Ham managers are currently in charge on the international stage.
Former Hammers boss Graham Potter is one of those. Potter, whose coaching philosophy is reportedly built around possession, tactical flexibility and patient build-up play, is now leading Sweden in the Nations League. Sweden followed up a 2-1 victory over Romania on Friday and will next face Poland.
While Potter earned plenty of plaudits for his work at Brighton, many West Ham and Chelsea supporters would argue that his time at both our respective clubs failed to live up to expectations. He has often argued that his methods require time and complete buy-in from players, something he struggled to establish, leading some fans to view his spell as overly cautious and ineffective.
He ultimately lost the dressing room at West Ham and as one player said “He didn’t know how to deal with egos, or players that came back at him and say things he didn’t agree with.”
The more popular figure among West Ham supporters is undoubtedly Slaven Bilic. The Croatian remains fondly remembered for guiding the club to a seventh-place Premier League finish during an entertaining first season in charge. Bilic’s teams have traditionally reflected his passionate personality, combining attacking intent with a strong team spirit. Now managing Croatia, he recently oversaw a 2-1 victory against Czechia and will next face Spain in a group that also contains England, who lost 3-2 to the World Champions last night.
Meanwhile, Julen Lopetegui is also back in the international spotlight. His brief reign at West Ham is hardly remembered with great affection and, for many supporters, ended for good reason. Despite managing Spain and Real Madrid, Lopetegui never succeeded in implementing the structured, possession-based football that brought him success elsewhere. He is currently in charge of Qatar and will lead them into their Gulf Cup clash against Yemen later today.
All three coaches have very different footballing philosophies, backgrounds and personalities. Their continued involvement in international football shows they remain highly regarded within the game. However, from a West Ham perspective, in my opinion only Bilic left behind genuinely positive memories. Potter and Lopetegui may have impressive reputations, but neither came close to matching the consistency, stability and success that David Moyes delivered during his two spells in charge of the Hammers.
Now, with Nuno at the helm at West Ham, he faces a different challenge, writing his own chapter in West Ham’s history and proving he can succeed where several of his predecessors fell short.