Julen Lopetegui close to new job after talks with West Ham United with Hammers board split
Julen Lopetegui is “close” to becoming the new AC Milan manager despite holding talks with West Ham about replacing David Moyes, according to The Guardian.
Writing on their website (27 April), the news outlet report that the Spaniard is close to taking over at the San Siro to replace Stefano Pioli who is expected to be sacked at the end of the season.
Lopetegui held face-to-face talks with David Sullivan that were seen as “positive”, however, his preference was always AC Milan and with the Hammers board split on if he is the right candidate it now seems as though he is out of the running for the job.
West Ham United shooting for the stars with new management
The Irons are desperate to secure a new manager before they confirm the departure of Moyes, it seems, but they’re not having much luck currently.
The club were used and rejected by Ruben Amorim publicly, before then turning their attention to Lopetegui who has opted for Milan. On the face of it it’s not the end of the world, but when other options realise they’re third or fourth choice, will they want to sign?
Managers such as Paulo Fonseca are also wanted elsewhere with Marseille pushing for his appointment, while Marco Silva and Sebastian Hoeness are already employed elsewhere.
The club are beginning to make a bit of a mess of the whole situation by being so public, and it’s no surprise that pundits are calling them “disrespectful”.
But they need to plan ahead and they need to get it done quickly, or they risk missing out on more targets too.
In other West Ham news, Peter Crouch was left stunned by one Lucas Paqueta incident in the 2-2 draw vs Liverpool.
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