West Ham told ‘Scattergun’ approach they must improve, rivals are streets ahead
James Sharpe has told West Ham that change under Graham Potter could be limited if they don’t improve their recruitment process.
The Hammers made the choice to part ways with Julen Lopetegui after a poor first half of the season with Potter coming into the club on a two-and-a-half-year deal.
The new boss will be keen to implement changes during the January transfer window although after plenty of money was given to his predecessor in the summer, this transfer window may have to be more measured.
Writing in The Daily Mail (10 January, page 76), Sharpe warned the Irons that they have further fixes to make as their Premier League rivals are “streets ahead”.
He wrote: “West Ham’s issues lay beyond Lopetegui. They will lie beyond Potter too.
“For him to succeed, the club must sort out, more than anything, their scattergun transfer policy – how they scout players, who decides to sign them and how they fit into the grand plan.
“Because there needs to be a plan as, right now, the Hammers are being left behind on and off the pitch. The recruitment of the likes of Brighton, Brentford, Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest is streets ahead of West Ham’s. So much of that too, is driven by data.”
West Ham have plenty of work to do amid Graham Potter appointment
There is no doubt that West Ham needed to make a change with Lopetegui failing to get his side going since his arrival and while the board gave him the time to work this out, a series of uninspiring results and performances made the sack inevitable.
Furthermore, when you compare the Hammers’ season to how well some of the other sides are doing in the Premier League, supporters at The London Stadium will surely feel some envy as they were previously watching their side play European football and now settle for mid-table.
However, there has to be some responsibility taken above the manager with questions asked of David Sullivan and the board about the number of new players that were recruited in the summer transfer window who have failed to show any quality in Claret and Blue.
The Times reported (10 January) that Tim Steidten has felt sidelined by Sullivan with less control over the transfers in East London suggesting there are internal changes happening.
The hierarchy needs to ensure they are resolving any issues as soon as possible to give Potter the best possible chance in his first transfer window as Hammers boss.
In other West Ham news, Alex Crook shares a ‘bizarre’ Irons claim after a breaking Everton announcement.
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