West Ham v Wolves: Lopetegui or O’Neill – who is most likely to be sacked?

Could Lopetegui’s final West Ham game be against his former club? The Spaniard left Wolves on the eve of last season after becoming frustrated at not being able to sign anyone.

After almost a year out of work, he became West Ham manager on July 1, taking over from David Moyes.

Moyes had led West Ham to Europe three seasons in a row, winning the Europa Conference League, but some fans felt his football was too negative.

Former Real Madrid and Spain coach Lopetegui should improve on that – but the Hammers sit 14th in the Premier League with just four wins so far.

A morale-boosting victory over Newcastle a few weeks ago was followed by a 5-2 home defeat against Arsenal and a 3-1 defeat at struggling Leicester.

West Ham are ninth in the Premier League in terms of number of shots, but only 16th in terms of goals scored (below Wolves) – with a shot conversion rate of 8.74%.

Lopetegui told reporters on Friday that he “didn’t think so” when asked if Monday’s game could be his last.

“We are not happy and the fans are certainly always right,” he said. “So far I think they give us a lot more than we give them and we have to change that. We work for it.”

“I focus on the things that are within our control. The only focus at this moment is to come back tomorrow and focus on Monday.”

Spanish football journalist Guillem Balague said: “West Ham played really well against Newcastle and Leicester but they seem to lack confidence. It’s not impossible to correct.”

“I see him tired, stressed and no longer himself because things haven’t worked out in the team yet. But he is convinced that he can turn things around.”

“He was coach of the Spanish national team, coach of Real Madrid and won the Europa League with Sevilla, but some people think he can’t be good enough for a team that finished ninth in the Premier League last season.”

Lopetegui’s future was discussed by senior West Ham figures last week – but it was decided to keep him in place for now.

West Ham legend Tony Cottee said on the BBC Sounds Sacked In The Morning podcast: “I wasn’t in favor of the appointment.”

“I didn’t think it was a successor to David Moyes. I was a big David Moyes fan. He had done an incredible job at the club – winning West Ham’s first trophy in 43 years.”

“Was the football permissive and attacking? No not really. But did West Ham win anything? Yes, they did.”

“I think it will always be difficult to replace David. Really, really difficult. I didn’t think it was the right appointment, but that was just my personal feelings. We are where we are now.”