West Ham United are set to appoint Nuno Espirito Santo as their new head coach after sacking Graham Potter on Saturday.
Potter was relieved of his duties after winning only six of his 25 games in charge.
The Athletic reported on Sunday that he was expected to stay in charge for their next league fixture against Everton, but his position was under serious threat.
Former West Ham manager Slaven Bilic also held conversations with the club’s board before focusing on appointing Nuno, who has been out of management since being sacked by Nottingham Forest in September.
He led the club to a seventh-place finish and Europa League qualification (after Crystal Palace’s removal from the tournament) in the 2024-25 season but was relieved of his duties only three league matches into the ongoing campaign.
The 51-year-old said his relationship with Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis had changed and the two were “not so close” anymore on August 22. Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis then said, however, that Nuno was the right person for the job on August 29.
“I have always had a very good relationship with the owner, last season was very, very close, almost on a daily basis,” Nuno told a press conference. “This season, not so well.”
On August 22, The Athletic reported that there was a potentially irreparable rift between Nuno and Edu, who was newly-appointed as global head of football at the start of July following his exit from Arsenal last November.
Nuno was replaced by Ange Postecoglou, who was dismissed by Tottenham Hotspur in June following a 17th-place finish in the league, despite leading the side to their first trophy in 17 years in May’s Europa League final.
Saturday’s 2-1 home defeat to Crystal Palace left West Ham 19th, with three points after five games in the Premier League. Including previous defeats to Chelsea and newly-promoted Sunderland, they have conceded 13 Premier League goals while only scoring five.
West Ham confirmed on Saturday that Potter had left the club.
“Results and performances over the course of the second half of last season and the start of the 2025-26 season have not matched expectations, and the board of directors believe that a change is necessary in order to help improve the team’s position in the Premier League as soon as possible,” the club said in a statement.
West Ham United can confirm that Head Coach Graham Potter has left the Club.
Full statement below.
— West Ham United (@WestHam) September 27, 2025
“The club can confirm that assistant coach Bruno Saltor, first team coaches Billy Reid and Narcis Pelach, lead goalkeeper coach Casper Ankergren, and goalkeeper coach Linus Kandolin have also left with immediate effect.
“The board would like to thank Graham and his coaching staff for their hard work during their time with the Hammers and wish them every success for the future.
“The process of appointing a replacement is underway.”
Potter’s departure comes as fans have been protesting the London club’s ownership and on-field results. A ‘vote of no confidence’ letter from the fans’ advisory board prompted West Ham to release a letter attempting to ‘reassure supporters’.
“I understand we’re in a tough situation,” Potter said after West Ham’s loss to Palace, during which chants of “you don’t know what you’re doing” and “you’re getting sacked in the morning” were directed at him from the home crowd.
“We want to do better than we are and at the moment we’re not.”
The Englishman was appointed to replace Julen Lopetegui in January, signing a two-and-a-half-year contract with West Ham. The role was Potter’s first since his unsuccessful spell at Chelsea, which lasted only 31 games over a few months before he was sacked in April 2023.
West Ham were 14th in the Premier League when Potter took over and finished the campaign in 14th, with Potter winning only five of the 18 remaining games in the season.
Over the summer, West Ham recruited wing-backs El Hadji Malick Diouf and Kyle Walker-Peters, striker Callum Wilson and goalkeeper Mads Hermansen, while Jean-Clair Todibo’s loan move was made permanent. FA betting charges against midfielder Lucas Paqueta were also found not to be proven in July.
In terms of outgoings, Mohammed Kudus moved to Tottenham Hotspur, with Michail Antonio, Danny Ings, Aaron Cresswell, Vladimir Coufal and Lukasz Fabianski departing at the end of their contracts. Fabianksi subsequently returned to the club earlier this month.
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