How effective the ‘new broom’ regime at West Ham has been is sometimes forgotten as the club stare down the barrel of relegation. By jettisoning lame duck boss Graham Potter way back in September, after his lamentable start to the season, the West Ham board might – just- have taken the action required to keep the club afloat in the Premier League.
Potter’s woeful start has taken half a season to turn around
Gone but not forgiven – Graham Potter
Of course, had they not appointed Brady’s mate in the first place then West Ham wouldn’t be in this sorry state. However, Nuno didn’t create an immediate ‘new manager bounce’ that would have saved the club and its supporters the months between December and March during which the Irons were anchored within the relegation zone.
Sadly there was no new manager bounce when Nuno Espírito Santo was appointed
In fact, Espirito Santo’s first three months were a tale of points surrendered and squandered opportunities. The club only really got motoring when 2025 gave way to 2026. The Athletic today highlights the stark difference in form which might yet turn around the club’s seemingly doomed campaign:
If you started the season on January 1, West Ham’s 22 points would see them pushing for a European spot rather than straining to avoid relegation.
That tally is good enough for seventh place in 2026, which only serves to show how poor their start to the campaign was. The clear identity that has been found under Nuno after his late September appointment means that West Ham are doubling down on a style built on improved defensive foundations that maximise the strengths of their speedy counter-attacking threat — not to mention their greater proficiency from attacking set pieces.
And showing that the Hammers of April 2026 are now winning an average of over 1.5 points per game – their best since Moyes’ heyday – the report introduces the 2002/3 spectre once again, of a club playing their best football too late to save themselves:
Looking at their form across a wider period, that uptick in points-per-game is stark. West Ham are a side on the up, though they are still negotiating the prospect of going down…
“A side on the up – yet still staring relegation in the face” shades of 2002/3
“With things remaining so tight at the bottom, it might go down to the wire for West Ham, with a final-day home game with Leeds looking likely to be a win-at-all-costs fixture that is not to be missed.”
Sounds like it’ll be squeaky bum time then, come May 24. As we always feared it might.
Some statement saying we are a “team on the up “? This is a team that rarely has the percentage of play and has been fortunate enough to play poor opposition lately, let alone being lucky there are 3 or 4 teams that somehow are worse than us including Spurs who have multiple injuries, if we are on the up, it can only be that the bar was set incredibly low to start with .
The understanding players are developing between themselves and coaches, is normally a good thing to see. Like a long tournament when commentators say how you want teams to progress and reach the final in good shape, improving from game to game. Something Spurs did not have at first. Good timing for WHU that team have a developing team spirit, a battling attitude & a togetherness on the pitch – every bit helps.
Also NES is regularly picking the same formation and team. We all have ideas on changes we’d like to see, but this would not help create that cohesion. Where it changes, is when subs come on, no idea what to expect then, but I’m getting off track.
Also prior to Potter there was Lopetegui. I’m not grouping them together, but 2 terrible managers in succession definitely had an enormous impact on the players themselves. This too needed to be turned around. Dinos for one, was in the team, out of the team (regardless how he played), in for half a game. It was like this under both managers and it was not until he started playing regularly and later other defensive changes were made, that he started playing for WHU as well as does for Greece.
Strangely some of the Potter speak, reminds me of Rosenior, such as ‘respecting the ball’. Sound bites that are puerile & meaningless, but people are supposed to nod in understanding, followed by a tantrum if questioned. Some weird managers & execs circling the honey pot that is football. Guess it has always been the case.
I wonder if Nuno might have turned things around earlier if he’d had the luxury of his own back room staff?
You have it in one there Morty. Nuno cut a lonely figure on the touchline for his first two games at least. Nobody to talk to. Nobody to talk to him. Nobody to help him during the week, too. He had to do it all himself and that was an impossible task with a bunch of players who were clueless about their roles within a system without motive.
Have the Athletic been reading my comments ?