West Ham have made ‘£10m’ payout after ‘Graham Potter agrees deal’
Everton’s former chief Keith Wyness has claimed the sacking of Julen Lopetegui and Graham Potter’s subsequent arrival will have cost West Ham around “£10million”.
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, the 67-year-old – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – insisted the “bad feeling” and “upheaval” at the London Stadium will be a “bigger cost” for the Irons hierarchy.
Lopetegui was finally sacked last week (8 January) after just half a year in the job at West Ham.
The Spaniard left the club sitting 14th in the Premier League after their 4-1 loss against Man City earlier this month.
Potter has signed a two-and-a-half-year deal and has already recorded his first win, beating Fulham 3-2 at home on Tuesday (14 January).
West Ham manager change will cost ‘£10m’ in total, says Wyness
Wyness suggested it was “incredible” how fast West Ham “spiralled” under Lopetegui.
He told Football Insider‘s Insider Track podcast: “It’s not a significant payout in the overall picture.
“West Ham have got plenty of headroom in terms of PSR.
“No-one likes to spend the £3.3m to pay off a manager but that’s the situation they are in. They had to make the move.
“We’ll have to see how he gets on.
“Potter has been a well-recieved appointment, and he’ll do ok – it’s a good marriage.
“We’re looking at another million for Lopetegui’s backroom staff, Potter will cost about £4m a year plus incentives.
“The whole thing, you’re looking at £10m for this change. That is plus the upheaval, the bad feeling with the fans – there’s a bigger cost overall.
“It’s incredible how quickly that can spiral. So that’s why people with experience understand you have to act reasonably quickly.”
In other news, West Ham set sights on three striker deals after Jhon Duran offer.
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