Nuno Espirito Santo sacking ‘will not solve West Ham’s massive problems’
Nuno Espirito Santo remains under pressure on his position as West Ham manager, but there are concerns that sacking him will not solve their issues.
That is according to former West Ham and Man United senior scout Mick Brown, who remains very well-connected at his previous clubs, as he exclusively told Football Insider that the problems at West Ham run deeper than just the manager.
West Ham drew 2-2 with Brighton last time out, in a game which was there to be won, as they extended their Premier League winless streak to eight games.
However, Brown told Football Insider on 30 December that West Ham are unlikely to sack Nuno despite falling into a relegation battled.
The Hammers remain 18th in the Premier League, and it has become clear that some deeper problems are influencing their drop off aside from the manager.
West Ham set to make Nuno Espirito Santo sack decision
Brown told Football Insider on 21 December that West Ham are at risk of being relegated due to their inability to grind out wins since Nuno’s arrival.
The former scout, who has a wealth of experience working closely alongside top-level managers including Sir Alex Ferguson and David Moyes, insisted that there are a myriad of problems at the London Stadium that sacking Nuno would not resolve.
“If they think sacking the manager will solve their problems, I’ve got news for them,” he told Football Insider.
“When I left West Ham, I said they would end up getting relegated within three years.
“Not just because I was leaving or because of what was happening on the pitch, but the decision-making and everything going on behind the scenes.
“I didn’t know how true that was likely to be, but they’ve got massive problems there and it’s only getting worse.
“They brought in Lopetegui then decided he wasn’t good enough, so brought in Potter and made the same decision, now Nuno is struggling too.
“It’s becoming clear to everybody on the outside that the manager, whoever it is, is not the problem there, but I don’t know if they can see that.
“Their recruitment has been poor, they’ve got centre-backs who can’t defend, midfielders who can’t get up to the play, and strikers who don’t score goals.
“Those are all issues on the pitch, and there’s always a bit of a feeling on instability behind the scenes as well, I just think it’s a bad mix.
“I wouldn’t wish relegation on anybody because I’ve been at clubs who have gone down and it’s hard to take, but it seems like they’re heading in that direction.”
When West Ham could sack Nuno amid growing frustrations
Despite having no plans to do so as things stand, Brown warned Football Insider that West Ham could be forced to sack Nuno as speculation about his future continues.
This comes amid a backdrop of protests against the board of directors, with many fans calling for changes to be made from the top.
Chants of “sack the board” rang out once again at the London Stadium with large sections joining in protests at West Ham lost 1-0 to Fulham, and have not died down.
When the fans start to put pressure on the owners, their response in years gone by has been to sack the manager and ease that pressure, and that could happen again.
Brown warned Football Insider in September that Nuno wouldn’t last long at West Ham, because when the pressure ramps up on the board, he will be first to go.
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