Karren Brady urging West Ham to hire interesting Julen Lopetegui successor

West Ham United vice-chair Karren Brady is pushing for the club to appoint an « interesting » replacement for Julen Lopetegui, with the Spaniard’s sacking still very much on the cards over this festive period.

Julen Lopetegui under pressure despite surviving West Ham axe

Lopetegui managed to keep his job after reigning supreme in the « El Sackico » against Wolves on Monday, but the 58-year-old is still hanging by a thread heading into Christmas.

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Title-winning manager privately expressing preference to join West Ham

Julen Lopetegui remains under pressure at the London Stadium.

Lopetegui’s early reign has been one of real disappointment after the club spent over £120 million on new signings in the summer window, having won just five times over their opening 15 Premier League games.

There are also suggestions that Lopetegui has been clashing with key West Ham players behind-the-scenes, so it has been far from easy for the ex-Real Madrid and Spain boss, who is facing weekly speculation revolving around his position in the dugout.

Former FC Porto boss Sergio Conceicao has privately expressed a preference over joining West Ham above the likes of Everton and Wolves, and there are numerous other candidates who’ve been linked with the potentially vacant post.

One of them is former Chelsea and Brighton boss Graham Potter, who has been out of work since his sacking by the former mid-way through 2023.

Potter is one of the West Ham managerial favourites, as per reports in the last fortnight, with the former Ostersunds boss also open to taking the job on a short-term contract until the end of the season.

Karren Brady pushing Graham Potter for West Ham manager’s job

That is according to reliable journalist Ben Jacobs, who also writes for TEAMtalk that Baroness Brady is pushing Potter for the West Ham manager’s job behind-closed-doors.

Jacobs claims there is still a very real possibility West Ham could sack Lopetegui over the next two weeks, depending on results, and Potter remains high on the shortlist alongside other names like Matthias Jaissle, Massimiliano Allegri, Edin Terzic and Conceicao.

What could give Potter an advantage over fellow contenders is his willingness to take the role on a short-term interim basis, a condition both Terzic and Allegri aren’t too keen on.

The tactician has undergone a very different pathway to most other elite English managers – first gaining attention by leading Swedish minnows Ostersunds FK from the fourth tier to Europa League last 32 – but this shouldn’t be seen as a deal-breaker.

“I spoke to Graham last year,” said Wayne Rooney on Potter in 2022, via an interview with The Times. “I had a few hours with him on Zoom, and he went through his journey with me. He was good, interesting.

“You look at Graham, or Arsene Wenger who went to Asia. [Jose] Mourinho has been in different places. Fergie started with small clubs in Scotland. Patrick Vieira managed over here [at New York City FC] and went to France.

“Everyone has a different pathway but they all did what they did to educate themselves and better themselves. Sometimes as a manager you just take the job that’s there, and work your way from there.”