Much has been made about West Ham defender Vladimir Coufal’s dissatisfaction with sitting on the Hammers’ bench. However, it is his comments regarding what he was promised by West Ham head coach Julen Lopetegui that pose the most telling questions.
Coufal claims he sat down with the Irons boss at the start of the season and was informed that he’d be given chances to play. The Czech right-back is not the first, nor will he be the last, footballer to complain when he’s left out of the team—he’s done so in the past under David Moyes.
Considering how aggressively West Ham and Lopetegui chased a right-back signing this summer, it was always likely that Coufal would be utilised sparingly this season. Therefore, the information the 32-year-old should have received from Lopetegui was, “We’re replacing you, and you’ll be backup.”
That clarity would have allowed Coufal to make an informed decision about his Hammers future. If he decided to stay in East London, it would have been with the understanding that he’d likely need an injury or suspension to a first-team player to secure significant game time.
To the player’s credit, he has gone out of his way to clarify that he has no axe to grind with the Spanish coach. But it does make one wonder, at a time when squad morale is being questioned, how many other players have received false promises from Lopetegui?
For all JLo’s shortcomings and the fact I like Vlad. No player can take it as a given even if a manager promises to give him a fair amount of game time. AWB is one player who I think has played pretty well. It is just the tactics that are shocking. Vlad needs to man-up
JLo has recent form of deceiving people.
The Spanish Football Association and Real Madrid can testify to that.
JLo must’ve deceived Sully big time at interview. Then again we should never have had him on a short list of candidates.