Rumours are swirling that Edin Terzic may be in line to replace Julen Lopetegui as West Ham United’s head coach, according to sources like Fabrizio Romano. For many of us Hammers fans, this might initially feel like a welcome change, especially after an underwhelming start from Lopetegui.
However, a closer inspection of Terzic’s track record suggests that he may not offer anything different, particularly if one scratches below the surface to look at the reaction of Bundesliga fans.
Terzic, once an assistant under former Hammers boss Slaven Bilic, did lead Borussia Dortmund to the Champions League final—a decent enough achievement on paper and of course he won the German cup as Martin pointed out last night. But Dortmund fans have voiced serious concerns over his tactical approach and accused him of bottling not one but two league titles.
Much like David Moyes, Terzic has been criticised for a passive, defence-oriented tactics which don’t get the best out of his attacking players. He often relies on overloading the midfield without creating clear opportunities and in a frighteningly similar comparison to Lopetegui he is accused of possession for the sake of it without hurting the opposition.
Moreover, Dortmund’s talented young players—Youssoufa Moukoko, Gio Reyna, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, and Karim Adeyemi—struggled to thrive under Terzic. This lack of player development is alarming considering the young academy talent waiting to break through.
Terzic is not fondly remembered at Dortmund
Uncanny similarities to Lopetegui
Concerns were also raised about Terzic’s inability to challenge Bayern Munich in a season where they looked vulnerable, allowing Bayer Leverkusen to leapfrog instead. This missed opportunity seems unlikely to be quickly forgotten by Dortmund fans who remain highly critical of his time at the club.
In addition, Terzic reportedly lost the dressing room at Dortmund. High-profile players like our own Niclas Füllkrug, Julian Brandt, Gregor Kobel, and Mats Hummels openly questioned his tactics in interviews. Internal rows and excuses from the manager about players not adhering to his game plan stirred frustration, eroding unity within the squad – sound familiar?
For those of us who are longing for a manager who can inspire exciting, attacking football at West Ham, Terzic might not be the answer. While Lopetegui has his critics, the Hammers could be stepping sideways—or even backward—by bringing in another manager whose conservative style doesn’t align with our hopes for a more vibrant, forward-looking team.
Personally, I’d prefer Andoni Iraola or Marco Silva but both would be wise to remain where they are given their clubs structured and measured progression behind the scenes.
No manager is sorting this crap out.
Sullivan makes mistakes at every turn and nothing is going to change.
Whilst I don’t think we are getting relegated, we have too many players that look unfit, disinterested and bang out of form and they have more questions than answers against them.
None of the candidates, not Terzic, not potter, not Mourinho, etc have a better win percentage than David Moyes. We need someone who is better than Moyes, has a better win percentage than Moyes.
And who would you suggest?
I have no idea why we aren’t talking to Potter, can’t see Terzic being worse than Lopetegui, though remembering the last days of Bilic and the lack of fitness of the players, who knows. Thomas Frank and Potter are the outstanding managers that probably most fans would accept, I don’t see how winning or losing against Everton should make a difference. It’s obvious the players don’t understand what Lopetegui wants of them, he subs the best players each game and mostly makes things worse not better. I don’t want a return to Moyesball and no subs until 80 minutes but evidence suggest Lopetegui is guessing and gambling rather than strategically changing things.
One would assume that Tim Steidten would know all about Edin Terzic’s statistics and, hopefully, his employment history. Unfortunately David Sullivan would probably not care about such things other than his previous history at West Ham and whether he makes a personable impression in an interview with him. So I hope Tim is the man who is given the responsibility of hiring a new coach. Of course, I am also assuming that Senor Lopetegui will not be staying at the club for much longer.
Terzic’s analyses of the Dortmund v PSG semi-final on Youtube are impressive…
Kevin Moscat, well worth a try, available in December
…the “most hated player in England” when he played there. are you Australian? i am, and it’s a big “nup” from me.