West Ham head coach Julen Lopetegui has shown real courage by demanding the club buy a new striker in January. It’s a bold move from a manager under pressure, clearly fighting back against the narrative that he is solely to blame for the club’s failures.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m still undecided on the merits and quality of the Spaniard, who was far from my first choice to replace David Moyes. However, I do feel that he has been on the receiving end of media leaks that, at best, seek to distance Tim Steidten from Lopetegui’s appointment and, at worst, undermine him.
Therefore, I have a grudging admiration for Lopetegui, who is clearly fighting back, albeit from a weak position.
Steidten has held a near-messiah-like position at West Ham since his arrival, and the club was absolutely right to adopt a more continental approach with his appointment. He has been rightly praised for his involvement in transfers that have succeeded, so it’s only fair that any failures are criticised as well.
It would be fair to say that Niclas Füllkrug was a transfer pushed through by Steidten, and most agree that Lopetegui did not choose him to lead the line at West Ham. Considering the public criticism the Irons’ gaffer has faced in the media, I don’t blame him one bit for demanding a new striker.
Steidten’s allies in the media have sought to separate the German from Lopetegui’s appointment, so it’s hard to blame Lopetegui for wanting to distance himself from a striker signing that supposedly wasn’t his choice.
Of course, none of this is particularly healthy for the club, with the two men in charge of football affairs playing a media game of chess. However, Lopetegui is correct in asserting that the Hammers can’t rely on Michail Antonio to lead the line all season.
While Lopetegui is responsible for the poor performances and results this season, if the squad is imbalanced, that fault lies with Steidten and the Hammers board.
