West Ham United Announce Julen Lopetegui As New Manager
West Ham United have officially appointed Julen Lopetegui as their new head coach. Reports earlier this month indicated that the Spaniard was interested in succeeding David Moyes, whose contract was set to expire at the end of the season.
The Hammers subsequently announced a mutual parting of ways with Moyes, primarily due to the team’s poor form since the beginning of the year.
This opened the door for Lopetegui, who was eager to take on another Premier League role following his brief tenure with Wolverhampton Wanderers.
On Thursday morning, West Ham confirmed Lopetegui’s arrival at the London Stadium, with his contract set to commence on July 1.
Say hello to the new Head Coach of West Ham United 👋⁰
Welcome to London, Julen Lopetegui! ⚒️ pic.twitter.com/2aCO0pY3Km— West Ham United (@WestHam) May 23, 2024
Speaking to the club’s official website, Lopetegui expressed his enthusiasm: “I am very happy to be part of the future of this big club. We aim to make our mark here.
“I believe we have a fantastic platform. The last few years have provided a solid foundation, but my ambition as a coach is always to improve, achieve more, and set bigger goals. We want to develop the players, the team, and compete because that’s what football is all about – competition. We are very ambitious in this regard.
“I am exactly where I want to be. I am here because I want to be, and it was a great day for us when we finalized our agreement. Our commitment is 100%. We had other opportunities, but I am very happy that West Ham chose me, as I chose West Ham too.
“We came here with the intention to make a significant impact. That’s why we’re here, and we’re excited by this challenge. We will do our best to help the club and the team reach the highest level and achieve our goals. I assure the fans that they will be crucial to our success.”
Lopetegui arrives with extensive experience in both European and Premier League football. Recently, he managed Wolves, leaving after just 27 matches due to disagreements over transfers. Despite this short stint, he successfully secured Premier League survival, lifting Wolves from the bottom of the table to a 13th-place finish.
Managing Wolves was a bold move for Lopetegui, who has previously led high-profile teams such as Porto, Spain, Real Madrid, and Sevilla. His most notable success came with Sevilla, where he won the 2019-20 Europa League and secured three consecutive fourth-place finishes in La Liga.
At West Ham, Lopetegui’s challenge will be to guide the team back into European competition after they finished the 2023-24 Premier League season in ninth place.
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