Julen Lopetegui to be fired up after what Alan Shearer has said about West Ham
Julen Lopetegui will be fired up after what Alan Shearer said as West Ham United take on Manchester City in the Premier League.
The Etihad Stadium will host the Hammers on Saturday (4 January) as the pressure on the former Wolves manager increases.
In their previous fixture, the Irons were all over the place and walloped 5-0 by Liverpool at Anfield.
The Spanish manager doesn’t have many backers among the London Stadium faithful after what has been an underwhelming season.
Lopetegui has won just six games in the Premier League, and the team is in the bottom half of the table.
With the quality of signings in the summer window, many expected the Hammers to compete for a European berth, which is still achievable.
West Ham need to prove Alan Shearer wrong v Manchester City
Shearer has predicted Pep Guardiola will get the better of his Spanish compatriot at the Etihad on Saturday.
The former English striker wrote in his column for The Metro (4 January): “I’m still not convinced by West Ham, and I do think that Man City will win this game, particularly with it being at home. Prediction: Man City win.”
The Sky Blues haven’t been at their best in the current campaign to say the least and sit sixth in the English top flight.
West Ham are just eight points behind the Citizens, and a win could propel them back into the race for the top six.
The Irons couldn’t have hoped for a better time to face Guardiola’s team, considering they’ve won just two of their last 10 Premier League matches.
Lopetegui will seemingly be playing for his future at the Etihad and needs to use Shearer’s comments as fuel to pull off a positive result at the Etihad.
In other West Ham news, a significant transfer development has emerged around Evan Ferguson in January.
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