West Ham United drew 1-1 with Brentford this afternoon, but the result will not be enough to quiet Julen Lopetegui’s naysayers.
Julen Lopetegui desperately needed a win today, but most importantly, he had to ensure that West Ham didn’t lose to Brentford in the vital Premier League clash.
Lopetegui is really feeling the heat at the London Stadium right now, and it has actually been claimed that the Spaniard’s job is at risk.
Whilst I don’t think he’s in danger of being sacked right now, he definitely cannot afford to oversee a run of three or four defeats in a row.
The draw today won’t really ease the pressure on the Spaniard, but a loss would have made the atmosphere at the club really toxic.
Don’t get me wrong, Lopetegui still has a lot of pressure on his shoulders to get his team playing better, but the point away at Brentford at least stops the rot.
However, three points would have been a real game-changer for us. Did Lopetegui really want the win? Or did he just not want to lose?
I think something the Spaniard did during the game today provided a window for everyone to see what he’s all about.
Julen Lopetegui made bizarre move during Brentford vs West Ham injury time
The Spaniard certainly hasn’t endeared himself to the Hammers faithful so far this season.
Sure, the results have been poor, but the general consensus amongst the West Ham fans is that Lopetegui is a little too bland.
He doesn’t seem to have the special sauce that we all desperately craved after David Moyes served us up bland on toast for the final nine months of his Hammers tenure.
Lopetegui lived up to that reputation this afternoon in west London, when the game was there begging to be won.
Just before the clock ticked over to the 92nd minute, Lopetegui took off his captain Jarrod Bowen – one of the few match-winners that was still on the pitch at the time.
The West Ham head coach threw on Andy Irving in place of the 27-year-old skipper – talk about waving the white flag and shutting up shop.
Never have I seen a substitution that proved a manager’s lack of ambition more than that one.
Listen, a point away at Brentford is not a bad result by any means whatsoever.
However, the Hammers created plenty of promising moments in the second-half and certainly had chances to win the game.
Lopetegui sub reeks of lack of ambition
So, have the Hammers just appointed the Spanish Moyes? That substitution late on in the game certainly gave me Moyes vibes.
The only big difference I can see right now between the two managers is that Lopetegui actually makes substitutions before the 70th minute!
I just would have loved to see Lopetegui go all out for the three points today by leaving Bowen on, and perhaps bringing Luis Guilherme on for the final five minutes or so.
As mentioned earlier, a draw away at Brentford is a decent result, but taking context into account, I think we actually needed the win today.
We face Ipswich Town at home, Tottenham away and Manchester United at home in our next three games.
A bare minimum of four points is now required from those games, preferably six.
Had we beaten the Bees today, three points from our next three outings would have been an acceptable return.
When games are there for the taking for West Ham in the future, I would like to see Julen Lopetegui take a few more risks.
