West Ham United Appoint Julen Lopetegui as New Head Coach

West Ham United has officially announced the appointment of Julen Lopetegui as their new head coach. Earlier this month, reports emerged that the Spaniard was interested in replacing David Moyes, whose contract was set to expire at the end of the season.

Due to poor form since the start of the year, West Ham and Moyes mutually agreed to part ways. This opened the door for Lopetegui, who was eager to return to the Premier League after a brief stint with Wolverhampton Wanderers.

On Thursday morning, West Ham confirmed that Lopetegui would start his role at the London Stadium on July 1.

Lopetegui’s Comments

In an interview on the club’s official website, Lopetegui expressed his excitement about joining West Ham: “I am very happy to be part of the future of this big club. We will try to make our mark here.

We have a fantastic platform to build on, thanks to the progress made in recent years. My ambition is always to improve, achieve bigger goals, and enhance the players and the team. Football is about competition, and we are very ambitious.”

He added, “I am here because I want to be here. It was a fantastic day when we finalized our agreement. We had other opportunities, but I am very happy that West Ham chose me, and I chose West Ham too.

We came here with the idea of making a significant impact, and we are excited about this challenge. I assure the fans that they will play a crucial role in all our achievements.”

Lopetegui’s Background and Experience

Lopetegui is known for his recent tenure at Wolves, where he left after just 27 matches due to a disagreement over transfers. However, during his time there, he secured Premier League survival for Wolves, lifting them from the bottom of the table to a 13th-place finish.

Before Wolves, Lopetegui managed top clubs like Porto, Spain, Real Madrid, and Sevilla. His most notable success came with Sevilla, where he won the 2019-20 Europa League and achieved three consecutive fourth-place finishes in La Liga.

Lopetegui’s mission at West Ham will be to guide the team back into European competitions after they finished the 2023-24 Premier League season in ninth place.