West Ham sent Rafa Benitez warning as David Moyes faces Hammers sack

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Premier League strugglers West Ham United should be wary of swapping David Moyes for Rafael Benitez with former Liverpool winger Jermaine Pennant telling talkSPORT (16 January, 11pm) that the Spaniard is ‘probably the worst man-manager I’ve come across’. 

There are a myriad of reasons why West Ham have gone from Europa League contenders to relegation battlers in the space of just 12 months. A spate of injuries to key players. A dramatic loss of form from the likes of Michail Antonio, Jarrod Bowen and Tomas Soucek. The struggles of summer signings Thilo Kehrer, Lucas Paqueta and Gianluca Scamacca. 

But, while those on the pitch must take their share of the blame, it’s David Moyes who has the most to lose as West Ham plummet down the table. According to the Daily Mail, only a lack of obvious alternatives is keeping the Scot in a job at present. 

The likes of Mauricio Pochettino and Thomas Tuchel are unlikely to join a club mired in the relegation zone. Nuno Espirito Santo takes home wages in the Middle East that the Hammers may be unwilling to match. 

2007 Champions League finalist Pennant is urging West Ham to stay clear of Benitez too; the 62-year-old’s cold shoulder approach unlikely to warm the cockles of those in the London Stadium dressing room. 

David Moyes facing West Ham sack with Rafa Benitez looming

“Don’t get him in your club,” says Pennant, a Liverpool player from 2006 to 2009. “I just don’t think he’s what they need. For me, he’s probably the worst man-manager that I’ve come across. You don’t need that.

“I could have played a game, scored a hat-trick, got Man of the Match and Rafa probably would have pulled me in and said; ‘You could have done this a bit better’.

“I don’t think the West Ham boys – especially with the time they are in – would do well under Rafa. So you stick with Moysey.” 

Benitez was parachuted into Newcastle United in similar circumstances in the spring of 2016 but, despite an immediate uptick in form, could not save the Magpies from the drop. His most recent spell in the Premier League ended around 12 months ago too, hounded out of Everton following a dismal start to the 2021/22 season.