West Ham have appointed former Chelsea, Brighton & Hove Albion and Swansea City manager Graham Potter to replace Julen Lopetegui after ending the Spaniard’s six-month reign on Wednesday.
England’s Potter, who signed a two-and-a-half year contract, has spent more than 21 months out of football since leaving Stamford Bridge, where his reign lasted less than seven months in the 2022/23 season , including 11 defeats in 31 matches.
The 49-year-old will have the chance to end his new club’s two-game losing streak when West Ham travel to Aston Villa in December. FA Cup third round Friday (8 p.m. GMT).
The Hammers return to Premier League action at home to ninth-placed Fulham on January 14 (7:30 p.m.) before the visit of Crystal Palace – currently one position below them – four days later (4 p.m.).
Potter’s first away league match will also take place at Villa on January 26 (4:30 p.m.).
West Ham United are delighted to welcome Graham Potter as the club’s new head coach ⚒️
– West Ham United (@WestHam) January 9, 2025
Graham Potter record
Potter joined Chelsea in September 2022 from Brighton, where he built a reputation for his progressive style of football and his ability to develop young talent in his first Premier League job.
The Seagulls were fourth in the table after six games of Potter’s fourth season in charge, and Chelsea never eclipsed that position during his brief tenure, sitting in 11th place at the time of his departure.
Chelsea’s greatest achievement under Potter was a run of four consecutive Champions League group stage wins and a comeback from a 1-0 first-leg deficit. beat Borussia Dortmund 2-1 in the round of 16although they were eliminated by Real Madrid following his dismissal.
Under Potter, Albion enjoyed their ninth highest ever final finish with the help of five wins and one defeat in the last nine matches of 2021/22, overcoming a decline of six consecutive defeats and just one goal between February and March.
Brighton finished 15th in Potter’s first campaign in 2019/20 and 16th at the end of the following season, going over a year without a home league win between 2020 and 2021.
Lopetegui sacked
Lopetegui, whose career includes managerial roles with Spain, Real Madrid, Porto, Wolves and Sevilla, was named to replace David Moyes in May, but defeats in his first three home games contributed to something the 58-year-old quickly does under pressure.
He oversaw a net spend of £85.2m over the summer but lost nine and won six of his 20 league matches, with West Ham 14th after their 4-1 defeat at Manchester City Saturday, seven points above the relegation zone.
Moyes won West Ham’s first European trophy since 1965 by winning the 2022/23 Conference League in a second spell at the helm spanning four and a half years.
