Tim Steidten could be sacked along with Julen Lopetegui just 18 months into a five-year project a journalist is now claiming.
Julen Lopetegui is not the only person under extreme pressure at West Ham.
Two days ago West Ham revealed they fear Arsenal want their technical director following the departure of Edu.
Now it’s being claimed Tim Steidten may even be axed along with the manager.
Overnight a journalist close to West Ham’s board claimed David Sullivan has made a major U-turn over Lopetegui.
It was stated that the Spaniard could now be sacked by Sunday if the Hammers don’t beat Everton.
Five managers – three of them German – have been linked as potential replacements.
Two brand new names are reportedly on the list after a change of heart from West Ham’s owners this week.
Lopetegui has failed to get a tune out of his expensively assembled squad so far this season.
With 12 games played – 10 in the Premier League – many believe there should be visible signs of what the 57-year-old is working towards by now.
Instead it could be argued West Ham are actually extremely fortunate in three of their four wins in all competitions.
Victories over Man United and Crystal Palace were considered lucky as West Ham could and should have been dead and buried by the time they secured victories.
Many feel the same was true for the cup win over Bournemouth, where the visitors were by far the better side only for West Ham to win with the last kick of the game, via a deflection.
Others have pointed to the club’s summer window business as a reason for their struggles.
Two West Ham players have put Steidten’s job on line
That’s despite West Ham being deemed to have ‘won the window’ when they spent £155m on nine new signings and shipped out 12 of the side which conceded a club record 74 goals last season.
Three of West Ham’s signings have been considered hits so far.
Crysencio Summerville has impressed and excited fans, who are frustrated at his lack of game time.
Meanwhile Max Kilman and Aaron Wan-Bissaka have been shining lights in the gloom that’s starting to envelop the London Stadium.
But now a journalist has claimed two West Ham players have put Steidten’s job on the line.
According to Graeme Bailey West Ham’s owners are seriously unimpressed with the way the technical director spent nearly £50m of their money in the summer.
Back in September the club’s owners exclusively told Hammers News that Steidten opted to save money on a striker signing in order to stretch his budget to ensure he could sign Luis Guilherme.
As a result, the club revealed Steidten decided not to pursue Jhon Duran at £45m and instead signed compatriot Niclas Fullkrug for around £25m.
That’s after having pushed to spend over £20m on totally untested Brazilian teen Guilherme, who had only made 19 appearances for the Palmeiras first team before West Ham snapped him up.
Now Bailey claims the decision to sign Guilherme and Fullkrug could cost Steidten his job.
West Ham owners ‘far from happy’ with two signings
The well-connected reporter says the summer spend, which was over £100m net, ‘explains the pressure that has arrived on Steidten’s doorstep’.
“The German was forceful in his pursuit of both Niclas Fullkrug and Luis Guilherme,” Bailey told Hammers News.
“But neither has started a league game since their arrival and the West Ham hierarchy are far from happy.”
So much so his head is now on the block as much as Lopetegui’s.
That’s despite the technical director declaring his ‘euphoria’ at having full control at West Ham following the departure of David Moyes.
And despite claiming just a few months ago that he sees the Hammers as a five-year project – which he is only 18 months into.
What Steidten said about West Ham’s five-year project
“I am euphoric at every game and every training session because I feel that I am in the right place, in the right league,” Steidten said after it became clear Moyes was leaving back in April.
“I wanted to have overall responsibility (and) I wanted to take control myself. It was a stark change for all three (Sullivan, Moyes and Steidten).
“David Moyes – I think – noticed through my transfers that my work was important. Conversely, I learned an incredible amount from him when it comes to perspectives on football.
“A squad restructuring is always a four-to-five-year project. I was at Werder for 18 years and could probably have worked there longer.
“But I also wanted to experience something different and never have to say to myself: I should have done that. But what I experience in England is particularly good for my development.”
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