Tim Steidten leaves Chris Sutton baffled with West Ham United decision
Tim Steidten has left Chris Sutton baffled with a recent Julen Lopetegui decision at West Ham United and the London Stadium.
The Hammers boss is under pressure in East London after his side were thrashed 4-1 by Tottenham on Saturday (19 October) to leave the Irons just above the relegation zone.
While some supporters are already calling for a change in the dugout, BBC Sport pundit Sutton has blamed Steidten for the poor start, suggesting his decision to appoint Lopetegui was wrong in the first place.
Speaking on It’s All Kicking Off (21 October, 36:10) he said: “The way I look at West Ham and where the blame lies, I think it was the sporting director Tim Steidten who when David Moyes was still in the job was actively making a play for other managers.
“I think they borough [Ruben] Amorim over and they were pulling managers across and it was very public. I think David Moyes banned him from the stadium and banned him from the dressing room.
“I just don’t understand that but I also don’t understand why you would bring in if West Ham wanted a different style of football to play the West Ham way, whatever that is, why you would bring in somebody like Lopetegui who is regarded as a pretty measured coach.
“More in the David Moyes category than the Postecoglou category so that whole decision-making process I don’t get.”
Who is West Ham chief Tim Steidten at the London Stadium?
While the majority of Hammers fans agreed that the time was right for Moyes to leave the London Stadium, they were much more divided when it came to the decision to appoint Lopetegui as his replacement.
As Sutton suggests, the former Real Madrid boss’ playing style is not a million miles away from the Scotsman’s. It is built around being hard to break down and hitting teams on the counterattack where possible.
That isn’t the West Ham way and while the manager has been rightly slammed for his decision-making, Steidten and the board at the London Stadium also have to take their fair share of the blame.
The technical director was involved in Lopetgeui’s appointment and for whatever reason felt he was the right fit for the Irons. That could prove to be a smart decision in time, but currently, it is looking like a total misstep.
Sutton is right to question his decision-making as well as the manager’s.
In other West Ham news, one pundit has suggested Lopetegui is “done” at the London Stadium after recent developments
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