Julen Lopetegui has been appointed as the new head coach of West Ham United.
Lopetegui replaces David Moyes, who left his role at the London Stadium “by mutual consent” after his contract expired at the end of the Premier League season.
The 57-year-old will work closely with technical director Tim Steidten, who will have more control over recruitment. When Moyes was re-elected in 2019, it came with the condition that he would have a big say in recruitment and transfers.
But with the appointment of Steiden last summer, West Ham are moving towards a more European model.
“I think we have a great platform,” Lopetegui said.
“Of course I think the last few years have been very good years to have that foundation, but as a coach my ambition is always to get better and better, to achieve more and bigger goals and to encourage and improve players. , teams and competing because that’s what football is – we’re very ambitious about it.
“I’m where I want to be. I’m here because I want to be here and it’s a great day for us to have a deal here because we’re 100 percent committed to being here.”
“We had other opportunities but I’m delighted that West Ham chose me because I chose West Ham, so we’re very happy about that.
“We come here with ideas and ideas to make a lot of noise. That’s why we’re here and we’re excited about this challenge. Of course we will do our best to help the club and the team reach the best level and achieve Our goals, I assure the fans, they will be the key to all our achievements.
Lopetegui, who has coached Spain, Porto, Real Madrid, Sevilla and Wolves, will officially join the club on July 1. .
“We are very pleased to welcome Julen and his staff to our club,” Stadelten said. “He is an outstanding candidate to become our head coach and I am personally delighted that we have chosen to work together. His career has shown that no matter what Where he has been during his time coaching, he has improved the players and the team and we look forward to seeing him work with our team.
“Julen lives and breathes football. He thinks deeply about the game, he is tactically sharp, he has proven that he can adapt to work in different leagues, different countries, national teams, and In every situation he demonstrated his outstanding qualities.
Merson: West Ham should be careful what they wish for
Sky Sports’ Paul Merson:
“West Ham have to be careful what they wish for. Moyes has pulled out the tree there, winning the European trophy. Steady seventh, eighth, ninth place, in the top half of the table again.”
“I’m not saying it’s going to happen overnight, what happened with Charlton, but I remember many years ago when I played with their fans, their fans were demanding to get rid of Alan Curbishley, saying this It’s boring, in the middle of the table, they want to play.
“They haven’t been around since. Moyes is a top player. They won a European trophy! It’s crazy.”
“I’m not going to get rid of him on Sundays for a month. You’re going to have West Ham fans coming back, saying this and that, throwing out every statistic in the world. But I’m only going to give you the biggest statistic of them all and you win. .
“I don’t care about this interesting football, we didn’t play well and we should do better with these players. They won trophies! You look at Arsenal, they are unbelievable and they could end up with nothing. ”.
“I’ve just started” – Lopetegui on the Premier League
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In December, former Wolves coach Lopetegui revealed in an interview with Sky Sports that his goal is to return to the Premier League
talking sky sports news In an interview with journalist Danyar Khan in December last year, Lopetegui explained why he felt he still had unfinished business in the Premier League and revealed that he met with the PFA, LMA and PGMOL during the break to prepare for his return. England’s top flight gets ready.
“That’s why I said no to a different country and a different situation, because I wanted to stay in England. I feel like our team has just started and we want to realize our dream,” Lopetegui said at the time.
“The football lifestyle in this country is special – it’s the best league in the world, the most competitive league in the world and the best environment for players, coaches and fans.”
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