Julen Lopetegui’s Surprising Admission Raises Concerns Over West Ham’s Communication Issues

Sometimes a story just passes you by, and that’s certainly the case with West Ham boss Julen Lopetegui’s comments following the Premier League loss to Tottenham.

Perhaps his quotes simply got lost in the melee of criticism and recriminations after the Hammers’ 4-1 defeat to Spurs, but I had to double-check that he’d actually said what was reported.

In essence, Lopetegui admitted he needs to improve his communication with his players, after West Ham conceded a flurry of goals in eight minutes at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The Spanish head coach said, “Maybe I have to improve, too, my translation with my players, for sure.”

Now, I must be mindful not to read too much into what he’s saying, but it is slightly concerning. Is he perhaps suggesting that his English isn’t good enough and he requires a translator? If that were the case, surely we’d have heard about it before, and presumably, he wouldn’t have performed well in the interview process.

More likely—and just as worrying—is that Lopetegui has difficulty articulating his ideas to the players. There were numerous reports last week claiming some of the squad were “unconvinced” by the Hammers gaffer’s tactics, but now we must question whether they understand them at all.

It certainly goes some way to explaining why the team look better when we revert to basics, as was the case in the first half against Spurs. Either way, it needs to be addressed quickly, as a new manager admitting he has to improve communication with his players is a concerning early development.