Julen Lopetegui’s first game in charge of West Ham United started with a narrow 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa at the London Stadium.
A lot was made of West Ham’s style of play under David Moyes and it was a key reason why he left in the summer.
That opened the door for Lopetegui to join and he has made quite the mark, even before a ball was kicked for their Premier League opener against Villa.
West Ham have probably had the best summer transfer window of any team, with Aaron Wan-Bissaka joining West Ham from Manchester United.
But Wan-Bissaka, and many of the other new faces, didn’t start, other than Max Kilman after he signed for West Ham from Wolves at the start of the summer and midfielder, Guido Rodríguez.
That was proven because West Ham started in a poor fashion, with Villa’s new boy Amadou Onana opening the scoring after four minutes and the away team being on top for large parts of the first half.
Villa should have scored more before Lucas Paqueta converted from the spot and the tide of the game changed towards the home team.
West Ham transfer target Jhon Duran then came off the bench to score the winner, with the London team’s overall performance being patchy and under-par.
Ian Wright admitted his surprise at West Ham’s team selection and how the fans would have been ‘optimistic’ about their side before they saw the starting XI.
But the former striker thinks only one player stood out for the Hammers and that was Mohammed Kudus, as he told Premier League Productions (17/08/24 at 7:40 pm).
Wright thinks ‘Kudus was the man’ for his side, with the versatile attacker going on many mazy runs during the game.
Mohammed Kudus stands out for West Ham against Aston Villa
“I think they (West Ham fans) were optimistic, until they saw the team (starting XI),” said Wright. “I think they thought that they might have seen more (new) players.
“But saying that, I thought Kudus was the man for West Ham – I was expecting to see a bit more energy (from the team) and a little bit more passing quickly and with pace.
“Then you see the subs come on and give the fans something to shout about, but it was very slow. I thought it was quite ponderous. They didn’t feel that game, apart from Kudus. I think something is going to have to change quickly. I know it’s the first game and you don’t want to get carried away with it. But I think West Ham fans will want to see a bit more urgency about their team. They want to see the new signings.”
Patience is needed with Julen Lopetegui
It’s only one game and his new signings are yet to start together, then gel and showcase what they are all about.
On top of that, you are trying to change the team’s style of play and change the mindset of a team that only the Premier League’s bottom three conceded more than last season.
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There have been many incomings at the club and you wonder who will now leave, with Lopetegui admitting that Kurt Zouma could depart West Ham.
Either way, West Ham are not giving up hope of signing Duran after his heroics for Villa, with Unai Emery now keen to keep him on board.
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