Report: Moyes has ‘backing’ from West Ham, but Irons have three ‘high-profile’ managers lined up

Jason Soutar
West Ham manager David Moyes looks dejected after a defeat

The West Ham hierarchy is ‘backing’ David Moyes to turn things around with the Irons sat 17th in the Premier League, according to a report.

The Hammers have started the 2022-23 season very slowly and are teetering above the relegation zone.

Defeat at home to Brentford on Friday night was West Ham’s fifth league loss in a row and the pressure on Moyes is unsurprisingly mounting.

Following the match against Thomas Frank’s side, Moyes admitted that he understands talk surrounding his future in east London but feels he has the support of the board.

He said: “Am I under pressure at the moment? No, not at all. I’ve got great support from David Sullivan.

“I’m not daft, you are always under pressure as a football manager. Nobody can get over that. Most managers, if you lose a few games, you are always going to be under a bit of pressure.”

West Ham are clearly feeling ambitious should Moyes be sacked, with the Daily Mail claiming that Champions League-winning head coach Thomas Tuchel is one of three they would look to bring in.

Having said that, the report does state that West Ham are backing Moyes to turn things around.

However, they would look to appoint Tuchel, former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino or former Leeds United head coach Marcelo Bielsa should Moyes leave.

Moyes probably does have enough credit in the bank to deserve some time to guide West Ham up the table.

He helped his side reach the semi-finals of the Europa League last term and finished seventh in the Premier League to qualify for the Europa Conference League – winning all six of their group games to advance to the last 16.

Despite his success during his second stint at the London Stadium, two of the three managers aforementioned would be a definite upgrade on Moyes.

I am referring to Pochettino and Tuchel, of course. Bielsa is an icon of the game, but he is not on the same level as those two at this moment in time.

Bielsa has been out of work since losing his job at Elland Road in February.

All three are out of work actually, with Tuchel losing his job as Chelsea boss in September and Mauricio Pochettino leaving Paris Saint-Germain at the end of the 2021-22 campaign.

They would likely demand a huge salary, but West Ham will probably be willing to pay them what they want.

The Irons have been hugely ambitious in the transfer market in recent seasons, spending around £150million on eight players last summer.

Tuchel and Pochettino were linked with the England job following their disappointing World Cup quarter-final exit, but Gareth Southgate will remain in the job going into 2023.

Both have managed in London before and while West Ham are not likely to be in the Champions League any time soon, the chance to move back to the capital could be too good to refuse.

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