West Ham United could have a busy summer ahead of them, with a new manager potentially coming in to replace David Moyes.
The Hammers boss is out of contract in summer and there hasn’t been any serious indication that he’ll remain at the club after the end of the season.
Football.london recently reported Moyes is expected to hold conversations with West Ham owner David Sullivan, but it’s widely anticipated that the club will seek a new direction.
Indeed, reports have started doing the rounds linking the Hammers with former Spain, Real Madrid and Wolves manager Julen Lopetegui.
And on Friday night, talkSPORT’s Alex Crook shared a big update involving the two parties.
What did Alex Crook say about West Ham and Julen Lopetegui?
Crook reported on the talkSPORT website that West Ham are now in advanced talks with Lopetegui.
And on his X account, he claimed that Tim Steidten has held face-to-face talks with the Spaniard.
Although Ruben Amorim still has an outside chance, Lopetegui is now the favourite, added Crook.
The report also claimed that Moyes is unhappy with West Ham lining up potential replacements while he’s still in a job.
Steidten has agreed to avoid the West Ham first-team dressing room until the end of the season, added the report.
It looks as though things are picking up pace on the Lopetegui to West Ham front.
Let’s see whether we get anything more concrete, or perhaps even a ‘here we go’ or official statement, in the coming days or weeks.
Julen Lopetegui boasts solid CV
Lopetegui is a highly rated manager, as shown by his roles at the helm of the likes of Porto, Spain and Real Madrid.
Admittedly, he was unlucky with both of the latter roles – his nation sacked him on the eve of the 2018 World Cup in wake of the Bernabeu news.
And then, Los Blancos started slowly under Lopetegui, and were quick to part company with him.
Since then, the 57-year-old has managed Sevilla and Wolves, which he left in 2023. Now, it looks as though another Premier League role is on the cards.