It was a disastrous start to West Ham United’s season.
Graham Potter’s team would have been pleased with the first day’s fixtures against one of the newly promoted sides, but instead of being eased into the Premier League campaign with a simple victory, they were cut off 3-0.
Things got worse as they were heavily defeated by Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur and a 3-2 League Cup loss to the Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Overall, Potter’s position seems unacceptable, resulting in the club linking to many potential alternatives, including those who were in the league last season.
Coach linked with West Ham
This season, the club has linked to many potential Potter alternatives over the last few weeks as a result of West Ham’s demonic form.
One of the coaches, who did a much better job than the British, was recently fired from Nuno Espirito Santo, who may have struggled in North London, but did an amazing job with Nottingham Forest and returned to European football for the first time in a few generations.
On the other side of the coin is Frank Lampard. Frank Lampard may have done enough work at Coventry City this season, but he has not been fired by either clubs between Premier League players Chelsea and Everton.
But now there’s a third manager in the mix. This is Kieran McKenna, a Potter upgrade and exciting manager.
Yes, according to a recent report from Hammer News, the boss of Ipswich Town is now in the mix to replace Irons Manager.
In fact, the report went further than that, revealing that sources told them that Northern Irish would take on the job if it was offered.
While some may be viewed as a risk, McKenna performed last season and there is all the chance that he could become a Potter upgrade.
Why McKenna is a Potter upgrade?
Well, first and foremost, McKenna has a better record on his current side than Potter, but that’s not even close.
For example, as John Burns infused him, the “sensational” Ipswich boss fought against a team where all teams still have many League One-level players last season, but has 83 wins, 48 losses and 48 charm.
In contrast, the Irons boss won just six games since taking the job in January, losing 13 and pulling out the other five.
McKenna vs. Potter (current job) | ||
|---|---|---|
manager | McKenna | Potter |
game | 179 | twenty four |
I’ll win | 83 | 6 |
draw | 48 | 5 |
loss | 48 | 13 |
Points for each game | 1.66 | 0.96 |
All statistics via sofa score | ||
In fact, the only teams with over 1.50 points per game are Ostersunds, as he averages 1.45 at Swansea City, 1.28 at Brighton & Hove Albion and 1.42 at Chelsea, who won the Champions League a year before he was appointed.
Another big tick in favor of the COA-born coach is that he has a track record of dragging his team out of depth and engaging success in the English game.
When he took charge of the Suffolk side, they declined in the third tier, and within a few years he led them back to back-to-back promotions to the Premier League for the first time in over 20 years.
Potter may have helped stabilize Brighton, but since leaving in September 2022, the seagulls have actually been a huge success.
Ultimately, there is a risk factor in hiring McKenna, but he appears to be a better manager than Potter, both statistically and in terms of project construction.