What Has Gone Wrong At West Ham And How Important Is The Rest Of The Season?

West Ham United currently sit down in 16th in the Premier League this season despite being highly tipped to challenge for Europe back in August. The Hammers won the UEFA Conference League just two summers ago however, they have won just nine matches out of 29 all season and suffered early exits in both domestic cup competitions.

The following article discusses why the East London club have failed to live up to expectations set on them at the start of the season, and how it is a must for them to end the season well and improve for next year.

'Max Kilman could become a club hero at West Ham!' ⚒️

Watch ‘The Lowdown - The most UNDERRATED signings of the summer’ on our YouTube channel now’ 👀👇 pic.twitter.com/rmRJGKG6Is

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) August 29, 2024

Summer Business

West Ham were very busy over the summer transfer window, looking to strengthen their side as they looked to rival to the ‘big six’ and achieve European football for the fifth time in six seasons. They brought in Spanish manager Julen Lopetegui who came with a wealth of experience under his belt, having managed the Spanish National Team, Real Madrid, Sevilla, and also previous Premier League experience with Wolves.

The Hammers bought very smartly in the transfer market, bringing in five big signings, who all looked like they would be integral to their European push. Their most expensive signing came when Maximilian Kilman arrived from Wolves for a fee of around £40 million. Their other four big money arrivals were all bought for between £15 million and £25 million in Crysencio Summerville from Leeds, Aaron Wan-Bissaka from Manchester United, and Niclas Fullkrug and Luis Guilherme joining from Borussia Dortmund and Palmeiras respectively.

Other signings included Guido Rodriguez on a free from Real Betis, and Jean-Clair Todibo and Evan Ferguson on loan from OGC Nice and Brighton respectively.

Departing East London were the likes of Said Benrahma, Kurt Zouma, Thilo Kehrer, Maxwel Cornet and Nayef Aguerd who all left holes which West Ham did, at first glance, replace well.

Julen Lopetegui (31.82%) now officially has a lower win percentage as West Ham manager than Avram Grant (31.91%) during the latter's infamous 2010/11 relegation season (all competitions) 😮‍💨

Another day, another drubbing 🫠 pic.twitter.com/uaMhiS5Qkq

— Hammers Hub (@HammersHubWHUFC) January 4, 2025

Pre-season Predictions and Time Under Lopetegui

Heading into the 2024/2025 Premier League season, many papers had the Hammers tipped to confidently finish in the top 10, however just fall short of Europe, with the likes of The Guardian and GiveMeSport both predicting them to finish in the 8th-9th range. And their season started much like everyone expected, with tough defeats to both Aston Villa and Manchester City, sandwiched either side of victories over Crystal Palace and a League Cup win against AFC Bournemouth.

Their schedule did not get anymore forgiving, a tough period for the Hammers saw them face four London clubs in their next six league games- after coming out winless from all of them, Lopetegui was starting to come under a lot of pressure by both the board and the fans. 2-1 and 2-0 victories over Man United and Newcastle restored hope in the Spaniard however his side were so inconsistent in between these matches that they kept sliding down the table, already 11 points behind a respectable seventh place.

The West Ham board eventually parted ways with Lopetegui on the January 8th with them having lost nine of their 20 league matches, and with just 23 points, just seven points above the relegation zone.

Where do West Ham's Struggles Lie?

So far this campaign West Ham have been poor at both ends of the pitch, ranking 16th on goals scored with just 33, and 5th on most goals conceded with 49. They are only above all newly promoted sides and Everton for goals scored and Wolves for goals conceded. This form was very much demonstrated in eight of their nine league losses under Lopetegui (and nine in all competitions) where the Hammers conceded three or more goals in their defeats. They only scored seven goals in these defeats too, proving their struggles towards the top end of the pitch too.

They have scored 10 goals in their 10 games since Graham Potter took over at the London Stadium, however his side do look better, having improved defensively, conceding 10 too however, are yet to let three or more through in a single game. A total of four centre-backs departed West Ham over the summer, and although they scouted well, in bringing in Kilman and Todibo, it did leave them with very little depth, with Konstantinos Mavropanos the only other recognised centre-half in their entire squad. Moreover, with Potter frequently opting for a three-back formation, it leaves Aaron Cresswell and Wan-Bissaka often filling in at left or right centre-back.

As for the attacking end of the pitch, West Ham have struggled to get their forwards going in terms of goal contributions, with Michail Antonio sidelined for the foreseeable, and Fullkrug also injured, as well as Danny Ings and Evan Ferguson unable to find regular minutes, it is Mohammed Kudus, Lucas Paqueta and talisman Jarrod Bowen who often play in the further attacking roles. However, the former two have struggled for any goal involvements, with the last time either of them were directly involved in a goal for the club being in early January. Bowen has been forced to carry his team on his shoulders, and to be fair to him, he has delivered the goods, taking part in 12 of their 33 goals (36%) this campaign.

Future Under Graham Potter

The remainder of the season is very important for West Ham and Graham Potter as they will look for something to build on for next season. With the team plagued either with injuries or just players who are struggling to make an impact this season- where can they look to improve for next season and beyond?

Despite West Ham’s defensive struggles, Alphonse Areola has been very impressive between the sticks, averaging over three saves per 90, also earning himself a Save of the Month nominee for March.

Defensively is where issues lie for the Hammers, they definitely will need to strengthen the centre-back position, with Todibo heading back to France, and fans calling for Mavropanos to leave East London, they will definitely need to bring in a big name for the backline next season to support the returns of Zouma and Aguerd.

As for the midfield, fans are also calling for Edson Alvarez, Guido Rodriguez and Guilherme to exit the London Stadium, and so bringing in a solid defensive-midfielder in with Premier League experience could be what West Ham will look for.

In the forward positions, the Hammers do not lack in quality with wide forwards, however, do lack an out-and-out goalscorer with the Fullkrug transfer clearly not working quite as they initially hoped. Their youngest forward is Ferguson, who is on loan from Brighton too, so potentially West Ham could invest in a younger player for the future in the hope that Bowen will no longer need to score or set up a teammate on a plate in order for West Ham to find a win if they want to push for Europe once more.