West Ham aim to ‘cover up’ another mistake as Nuno Espirito Santo seeks new staff member
West Ham are searching for new backroom staff to aid Nuno Espirito Santo following the departure of Graham Potter.
Potter left West Ham alongside Kyle Macaulay and his staff on Saturday in a surprise managerial switch – at least in terms of the timing – just two days before the game against Everton.
Plenty feel that David Sullivan didn’t give the former Chelsea boss any respect when he was dismissed a day after conducting the pre-match press conference.
Vice-chair Karren Brady reportedly dismissed Potter over the phone, with Nuno left without his regular backroom staff following the rushed change.
West Ham in search for goalkeeper coach after ‘costly’ decisions
The Hammers have struggled to avoid conceding from set pieces so far this season, with Michael Keane condemning them to their eighth goal conceded from corners this season.
West Ham’s set-piece coach, Narcis Pelach, also left alongside Potter, but a lot still needs to be done by Nuno to stop their poor defensive form.
Alphonse Areola has replaced Mads Hermansen in recent weeks, with the Denmark international struggling to retrieve the ball from crosses.
West Ham went on the hunt for another stopper but ended up re-signing Lukasz Fabianski instead.
Goalkeeping coach Casper Ankergen was brought in to replace Xavi Valero, but Ankergen left West Ham alongside Potter.
Hermansen previously worked under Ankergen at Bronby IF and was likely one of the reasons the Danish international was signed in the summer.
His predecessor, Valero, is now working for Liverpool, with Areola starting ahead of Hermansen.
As pointed out by The Guardian’s Jacob Steinberg on X: “All of this goes to show West Ham make costly short-term decisions and are always looking to cover up the last mistake. Nuno will obviously need a new goalkeeping coach.”
Alphonse Areola to continue in goal vs Arsenal
Against set-piece kings Arsenal, the Hammers will need a strong goalkeeper in the air to claim crosses.
Hermansen has already shown he is too weak, and Nuno will likely stick with Areola for the next game.
The 25-year-old will face a battle to get back into the West Ham side and may have to wait until their next game in cup competition to get back into the side.
| Mads Hermansen so far this season | |
| Saves | 4 |
| Save percentage | 33.3% |
| Goals conceded | 8 |
| Goals prevented | -1.22 |
| Errors leading to goals | 1 |
| Passing accuracy | 63.6% |
Areola was strangely ostracised by Potter over the summer, with the 50-year-old wanting him gone, despite not making too many errors last season.
It will be interesting to see who Nuno sticks with in net and whether the number one position becomes a priority in January.
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