Julen Lopetegui appears to believe that history will look back a little kinder on his brief spell in the dugout of Premier League outfit West Ham United.
It would be a stretch to suggest that fans were pining for the Spaniard when his successor – the much-maligned Graham Potter – helped set West Ham United on their way to a worst start in 52 years.
But if Nuno Espirito Santo leads the Hammers to a 14th place finish this term, most would consider that a success in the circumstances. Fourteenth, by the way, is where the club found themselves when Julen Lopetegui was given the boot eight months ago.
And while a 30 per cent win rate is nothing to write home about, both of the managers to come after Lopetegui are currently falling short of even that number.
Potter’s win rate was a miserly 26 per cent. Nuno got off the mark against Newcastle United on Sunday – a much-improved and highly-refreshing display – but only Avram Grant has a worse record than he, albeit at a very early stage in his East London life.
Julen Lopetegui explains his ‘goal’ at West Ham United
There is an acceptance now that, while the one-time Spain, Real Madrid and Wolves coach did not have the desired effect, West Ham’s problems ran much deeper than Lopetegui.
Expectations were raised considerably after the club spent well over £100 million on the likes of Niclas Fullkrug, Luis Guilherme, Max Kilman and Jean-Clair Todibo. Given that his departure hardly led to an upturn in performances from the expensively-acquired quartet, Lopetegui could be forgiven for wondering why the fingers were pointed at him rather than the since-departed Tim Steidten.
The man who led Qatar to the 2026 World Cup, meanwhile, also feels that a top-ten finish might have been achieved had he been given the chance to invest in the winter.
“When we left, we weren’t doing so badly. There were high expectations for that team, and we were thirteenth [sic, fourteenth], with a better points average than the next season,” Lopetegui, who was sacked just eight days into the January window, tells Marca.
“Sometimes, each club’s expectations are unrealistic.
“We were doing some very interesting work for the future. The goal was to be in the top ten. We were three points away from that, and we still had the winter transfer window to go. The team didn’t improve, and now it is where it is.”
Lopetegui defends his record after leading Qatar to the 2026 World Cup
Lopetegui’s CV, meanwhile, is far better than his record of seven wins in 22 West Ham matches may suggest.
Albeit his reputation will always be tainted by that disastrous 14-game spell in charge of Real Madrid, Lopetegui did save Wolves from relegation after winning the Europa League with Sevilla and enjoying an unbeaten spell with the Spanish national team.
Qatar will also feature at the 2026 World Cup – their first time not as tournament hosts – after Lopetegui masterminded a 2-1 win over the United Arab Emirates.
His dancing skills, though, well let’s just say Strictly are unlikely to be on the phone.
“My credit belongs to my staff, who are fantastic. We haven’t done badly wherever we’ve gone,” adds the one-time Barcelona goalkeeper.
“At Real Madrid, we left, yes. But it’s true that if you look at the end of that season [2018/19], we weren’t doing so badly when we left. At Sevilla, we achieved something historic. Three consecutive years in the Champions League.
“At Wolves, we achieved something that had only been done once before in the Premier League. Bottom of the table on December 25th and managing to avoid relegation four matchdays before the end.
“At West Ham, when we left, we were in 13th place [sic, 14th]. Not too bad considering what happened later.”
