Credit: Imago and Match of the Day

Max Wilkins

Mon 25 May 2026 10:10, UK

Alan Shearer believes West Ham United have rotted from the top down in recent years.

The Hammers are officially a Championship team after their 18th-place finish was confirmed despite a 3-0 win against Leeds United on the final day.

Picking up three points didn’t matter in the end, as Tottenham did what they needed to do and secured their fate with a 1-0 victory over Everton.

That has left the claret and blue outfit to wave goodbye to the Premier League, with many suggesting that the writing has been on the wall for a long time.

West Ham have now dropped into the second tier, with Shearer looking upwards as he assesses the situation at the London Stadium.

Alan Shearer can’t believe what the West Ham board have done

There isn’t really anything positive to say about the Irons right now after months of failure across the board.

Results on the pitch haven’t been helped by transfer business and general uncertainty surrounding the dugout in East London.

There has been a systematic failure at the London Stadium both on and off the pitch, with Nuno Espirito Santo tasked with picking up the slack.

He obviously failed to do so as relegation was confirmed, although it may not be fair to blame him for what has happened.

That is the feeling of Shearer on Match of the Day as he believes the hierarchy in E20 have to take responsibility for their work off the pitch in recent years.

He said: “What happens at the top of the football club filters onto the pitch, and that’s what’s happened at West Ham. Ultimately, their recruitment over the years has been really poor.

“Look at the three years since David Moyes left, they’ve had 10 players signed for £25million or more. They’ve got three out on loan. It’s an incredible amount of money that’s been spent, and they’ve got nowhere near value for money.”

Shearer doesn’t want excuses for West Ham’s relegation, but he is certainly unimpressed by the board and transfer staff who should have done better.

How many £25m+ West Ham signings have worked out since 2023?

There have been plenty of false dawns in recent years at the London Stadium, but they have all gone badly, to say the least.

It is all summed up by Max Kilman being the most expensive signing since 2023, with his performances being shocking from day one.

Arguably, only three of the £25m-plus signings have been successful in Mateus Fernandes, Crysencio Summerville and Mohammed Kudus.

The latter only ticks a box because he sold for a profit, while the other two have been key performers despite relegation this season.

That is as good as it gets with the likes of Niclas Fulkrug, James Ward-Prowse and Edson Alvarez just proving how badly money has been spent in East London.