Manuel Pellegrini’s reign at West Ham United has got off to an abysmal start, losing four out of four to kick off his new era in the Premier League.
With football being the sport that it is nowadays, there are already questions being asked of the Chilean, and whether the East Londoners should look to sack him - here are some reasons as to why it would be a foolish decision this early into his reign.
Financial capability
In the newspapers this week, with there being a lot of stories regarding the 64-year-old already facing the axe, there has been reports about how much it would cost the Hammers to get rid of Pellegrini. According to various reports, the Irons failed to add a termination clause into the former Manchester City bosses terms, meaning that they’d have to pay him out of his contract - a hefty fee given the long-term deal only started a couple of months ago.
This would already set West Ham back, especially following a huge summer spending spree, and would mean that any new appointments would be on a very small budget to work with - surely meaning that any ‘risk’ around sticking with Pellegrini is one worth taking, especially given he’s only four games into his reign.
Slow starts often result in a strong finish
Whilst many managers often aren’t given time in the modern game after a few poor results, sometimes they are, and the loyalty can prove to seek reward.
Eddie Howe’s Bournemouth side started last season in similar fashion to West Ham, losing all of their first four Premier League games, resulting in them also being rock bottom. Although, with Howe being a long-serving manager at the club, the board opted to work uncharacteristically in modern day football and place their trust in him.
Howe’s side ended up finishing 12th, arguably above expectation for one of the lowest budgeted sides in the Premier League.
As well as this, after just three games in charge of Manchester City, Pellegrini was again winless - he went on to win the Premier League that season, perhaps proving that the Chilean is often a slow starter, but surely someone worth keeping on.
A better replacement?
Last season Slaven Bilic was sacked by the West Ham board after a poor start to the season and the London Stadium’s faithful becoming disgruntled at the inconsistency and lack of progression in the side. As a result of this the club turned to David Moyes, who was also not a favourite at the club due to his style of play.
This begs the question as to who West Ham would realistically appoint that could do a good job in East London, whilst playing an attractive brand of football to keep the fans happy. There are a few short-term replacements that could be seen as a quick-fix, although few long-term managers of the calibre and experience of Pellegrini that could stick around for a long period of time.
If fortunes at West Ham don’t turn around over the next period of fixtures following the international break, then it may be time to start accessing the Chilean’s future at the club.
For now, the majority of the West Ham fans will be backing their boos, and it would surely be a poor decision to not give him more time to settle in, let the player learn his style, and start getting points on the board.