West Ham United

James Jones
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

Three games into the new season and the direction in which West Ham is heading has never been more alarming.

Graham Potter was given the benefit of the doubt after he arrived at the club in January. He inherited a squad of players which was in decline under the previous two managers, but he still managed to steer the club away from relegation trouble and oversaw impressive away wins against Arsenal and Manchester United in the process.

But now, with the club conceding 11 goals in three games and looking no where near good enough to compete at the top level of English football, the pressure is rightly building on Potter's shoulders.

There are several factors to consider in this situation, though. Indeed, tactically West Ham have been very poor over the last couple of weeks. The back three doesn't look suited to their jobs, the midfield is slow and cumbersome, and the attack is far too reliant on one player delivering each week.

Elsewhere, you have to wonder how this summer's PSR restrictions have hindered Potter's recruitment wishes. That isn't his fault and there is a belief that the club wouldn't be so desperate for reinforcements in the final week of the window had he had a bit more freedom to go out and get whoever he wanted.

But good managers adapt and at the moment, Potter isn't adapting. He's sticking with a formation that isn't working and a midfield that isn't good enough.

Can he salvage it? It all rests on the final few days of the window. But if there is no sign of improvement this weekend against Nottingham Forest, it's difficult to see how he survives beyond the international break.

Find more from James Jones at We Are West Ham, external

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for your views on whether Graham Potter is the right man to take West Ham forward this season, or if it's already time to be looking elsewhere.

Here are some of your comments:

Dave: It's hard to fully judge Potter as he inherited a declining and hugely unbalanced squad (even going back to under Moyes) which we've made worse by releasing and selling important players. He seems to have no support from the board in terms of improving it. We should have had all our signings lined up ready for when Kudus was sold. But at the same time his team selections are baffling, his substitutions (or lack of) equally so. We have no identity or pattern of play under him and the players look a disorganised, lost mess. We are a shambles. But I'd rather David Sullivan left over Potter.

Tom: I think the ship has sailed for Potter. The way he sets up the team and his in-game tactics are baffling and not the way that our squad likes to play. He's a nice bloke, performed admirably at Brighton, but he's been found out at Chelsea and now at West Ham as well. I think he needs to go to a lower league side to get his confidence back before tackling the bigger leagues. West Ham cannot continue with Potter, Brady and Sullivan. We need a complete overhaul if we are to stay up this year, otherwise I fear we are going to go past the point of no return.

Jonathan: Still believe in Graham Potter, he simply doesn't become a bad manager overnight. The issue is that he hasn't been supported by Sullivan and the board and has been made to rely on the signings of Lopetegui so the team he puts out still isn't his own. I do believe he'll get it sorted and turn our form around though.

Steve: He has to go. His record since he arrived is simply awful. His obsession with possession-based, defensive formations simply doesn't work. The hierarchy at the club have to take responsibility as well, out of all their managerial appointments has anyone taken this club forward? There is no way he is a Premier League manager.

Image source, Getty Images

Three games into the new season and it is three defeats for West Ham and boss Graham Potter.

After a heavy loss to his former side Chelsea at the weekend, the Hammers followed it up by letting a lead slip against Wolves to suffer an early exit from the Carabao Cup on Tuesday.

The statistics for Potter's time at West Ham do not make for pretty reading - as you can see in the post below this one.

We asked for your views on his future after the opening game of the campaign and the response was pretty split.

So, how are you feeling now? Can Potter take this West Ham side forward? Or is it already time to be looking elsewhere?

Get in touch with your views here

Matthew Hobbs
BBC Sport journalist

It was a messy night for West Ham in the West Midlands as they fell to a third successive defeat of the new season. The Hammers have conceded 11 goals so far in 2025-26 and Jarrod Bowen's apology following a confrontation with supporters is the latest sign of a club struggling on and off the pitch.

The overriding concern for West Ham fans is that the warning signs have been there for some time. Since Graham Potter took over on 14 January, the Hammers would be bottom of a Premier League table featuring only the ever-present clubs.

Since the start of March, they have won just two of 13 Premier League matches (D4, L7). They have also faced the most shots on target in the top flight this season (12).

The Hammers have also dropped 15 points from winning positions under Potter – the most of any Premier League team during his tenure. Meanwhile, two defeats - and eight goals conceded - constitutes their worst start to a league season since 1954.

Image source, Getty Images

The competition may have changed on Tuesday, but defensive frailties were once again exposed by conceding twice in the final eight minutes. They shipped three goals to a Wolves side who had started this campaign by failing to score in two defeats.

Potter himself has called for unity following the Molineux setback, but with a record of just five wins in 22 games since replacing Julen Lopetegui at London Stadium, time may already be running out to turn his side's long-standing issues around.

Next up is a trip to Nottingham Forest on Sunday - and West Ham have not scored a Premier League goal at the City Ground since 1996.

• Find and follow your Premier League club on BBC Sport

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

It should not look this bleak this early but it is hard to pick out the positives for West Ham.

When Jarrod Bowen walked over to applaud the travelling fans at the final whistle it was a show of support.

Yet stewards then appeared to stop Bowen getting any closer to the supporters as the forward became angry, potentially over something said in the crowd.

What started as a show of unity ended in highlighting the Hammers' fractures and it underlined the tension which has already started to boil over after just three games.

Three defeats, 11 goals conceded and just days of the transfer window left.

The Hammers go to Nottingham Forest on Sunday and Graham Potter needs quick results, especially after being undone in the final 10 minutes.

West Ham are close to a £17.3m deal to sign AS Monaco's 21-year-old French midfielder Soungoutou Magassa. (Guardian, external)

The Hammers are exploring a deal for Nottingham Forest's Ivory Coast defensive midfielder Ibrahim Sangare, 27. (Sky Sports, external)

Want more transfer stories? Read Wednesday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Image source, Getty Images

West Ham boss Graham Potter, speaking after his side's Carabao Cup exit at the hands of Wolves: "We're all in pain so we need everybody to help, we need everybody's support, we need to push forward and on to the next match.

"The team's suffering at the moment, we all are, we're all hurting. I can assure you no-one's happy."

On captain Jarrod Bowen appearing to confront fans after the game: "I have no idea what was said or anything. Our supporters have been fantastic, they are hurting because of the results we've had and Jarrod obviously cares about the club and the team. It's just an exchange of views by people who care.

"Everyone is hurting, rightly so because we haven't had the results we'd like. Jarrod has been a fantastic captain and servant for the club."

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Wolves's performance

What did you make of West Ham's display?

Wolves boss Vitor Pereira has made eight changes for the EFL Cup visit of West Ham.

Only Emmanuel Agbadou, Jean-Ricner Bellegarde and Jhon Arias remain from Saturday's Premier League defeat at Bournemouth.

Wolves XI: Johnstone, S Bueno, Agbadou, Mosquera, R Gomes, Andre, Bellegarde, H Bueno, Lopez, Hwang, Arias.

Subs: Bentley, Doherty, Munetsi, Wolfe, J Gomes, Strand Larsen, Kalajdzic, Chirewa, Tchatchoua.

Alphonse Areola, Kyle Walker-Peters, Dinos Mavropanos and Guido Rodriguez start for West Ham at Molinuex.

Mads Hermansen, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Maximilian Kilman and Niclas Fullkrug drop out from their 5-1 defeat to Chelsea, with Wan-Bissaka not in the squad.

West Ham XI: Areola, Walker-Peters, Todibo, Mavropanos, Aguerd, Diouf, Rodriguez, Ward-Prowse, Soucek, Paqueta, Bowen.

Subs: Hermansen, Scarles, Kilman, Potts, Orford, Irving, Fullkrug, Wilson, Marshall

There are five games involving Premier League sides in the Carabao Cup second round on Tuesday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Wolves v West Ham (19:30)

• Burnley v Derby County

• Sunderland v Huddersfield Town

• Bournemouth v Brentford - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra 3

• Sheffield Wednesday v Leeds United (20:00) - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

Kick-off times 19:45 BST unless stated

Follow all of the action and reaction here

James Jones
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

Two weeks ago I wrote about how a relatively good pre-season had transformed fears of a potential relegation battle into cautious optimism that Graham Potter might just be able to lead West Ham forward this season.

That was short-lived, though, after kicking off the new campaign with two defeats and eight goals conceded, the most the club has shipped from their opening two games in any Premier League season in history.

Seven of those goals have come from wide areas, despite West Ham's current back three costing the club over £100m in transfer fees over the last three summers. At least three of them can be attributed to poor decision-making from the club's new £20m goalkeeper, Mads Hermansen.

Quite frankly, it does not look good.

With under a week until the transfer window closes, Graham Potter has a lot of work to do if he is not only going to turn things around, but also save his job. Top of the list of business which needs to be done is fixing the midfield.

It has been painfully clear that Potter's side lacks pace, creativity and physicality in the middle of the park.

A combination of James Ward-Prowse, Tomas Soucek and Guido Rodriguez does not equal a top quality midfield at this level. All of them have their own attributes which the team can benefit from, but when playing together they offer very little both in and out of possession. Potter needs a midfielder who these players can compliment, who is able to take the game by the scruff of the neck and make things happen.

Young Freddie Potts was handed his Premier League debut against Chelsea on Friday and he does show promise, but it would be unfair and unwise to put all the pressure on him to provide exactly what West Ham's midfield needs. He needs time to develop further before being handed that kind of responsibility.

Failure to fix this major issue over the next week could have catastrophic consequences for both the club's and Potter's futures.

The clock is ticking and now, all eyes are on David Sullivan…

Find more from James Jones at We Are West Ham, external

West Ham have rejected a bid from Everton for midfielder Tomas Soucek. (Times - subscription required, external)

Want more transfer stories? Read Tuesday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

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Former West Ham midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker believes the Hammers will be battling relegation this season because "they look weak" and manager Graham Potter looks "lost".

It has been a nightmare start with two defeats and eight goals conceded from the opening two matches.

"It looks very bleak for West Ham right now," said Reo-Coker on the BBC Radio 5 Live Football Daily podcast. "Things are looking tough.

"I think they will be in a relegation battle this season. There was just no fight or togetherness against Chelsea. They looked like a bunch of individuals.

"The biggest worry is midfield because they just don't have any legs or dogs of war to win the ball back. They look weak.

"They can't get the ball up either because there's no real target man.

"Recruitment has been a big problem at West Ham for some time now. They have no real direction in what they are trying to build or do.

"You can always tell a lot by a managers body language and facial expressions and a couple of times when the cameras panned to him, he looked like he had no idea what to do.

"Potter looked lost. I think most West Ham fans will just be happy to see them stay up this season.

"There is no other ambition than survival in the Premier League."

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West Ham boss Graham Potter is safe from the sack for now, but he needs to improve results soon if he wants to remain in his role at London Stadium. (Mirror), external

Hammers midfielder Lucas Paqueta is a target for Tottenham and Aston Villa. (Mail), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Monday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Pundits Alan Shearer and Micah Richards join host Kelly Cates to bring you the action and talking points from Friday and Sautrday's Premier League fixtures.

Watch on BBC iPlayer here

And listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• Brentford 1-0 Aston Villa

• Burnley 2-0 Sunderland

• Arsenal 5-0 Leeds

We asked for your thoughts after Friday's Premier League game between West Ham and Chelsea.

Here are some of your comments:

West Ham fans

Matthew: I've never seen a West Ham side as disorganised, lethargic and uncommitted in all my life. Every Chelsea attack was like a knife through melted butter, and emphasised how far away we are from those European nights.

Rob: Looking like a Championship side after just two games. Schoolboy errors all over the pitch and other teams can't wait to play us. How do we get out of this one ?

Rich: Playing at Upton Park gave West Ham an extra player. London Stadium is like playing with nine men. Yes, they were poor, but this ground makes it hard to get behind the team and easy for terrace critics to dominate. If West Ham players fear playing at home, the team is in a doom loop. How do fans help stop this?

Chelsea fans

James: A good performance. Apart from the early West Ham goal, it wasn't really much of a contest. We look very good going forward. It will be interesting to see how Maresca manages minutes among the vast array of talent in this squad.

Martin: Won 5-1 and didn't really get out of second gear. West Ham were woeful. Still think Chelsea need to tighten up at the back because we looked vulnerable a few times. Estevao will light up the Premier League.

Scott: Great result but a flattering scoreline - it was more down to West Ham being utterly awful after they took the lead. We will cause any team problems going forward, but defensively we're still suspect. And what was Sanchez doing for the Hammers goal? He will cost us tight games.

Nizaar Kinsella
Football reporter at London Stadium

Image source, Getty Images

One of the loudest cheers from the home support came in second-half stoppage time when Mads Hermansen claimed a cross.

Of course they were ironic cheers from those that remained in the stadium, after a mass exodus began around the 54th-minute mark when Moises Caicedo struck Chelsea's fourth goal after a mistake from their keeper, a £20m summer signing from relegated Leicester City.

This was not the fresh start either Hermansen, or the wider squad, will have wanted.

Three of the Chelsea goals came from corners, with blame also likely to fall at the feet of West Ham's outfield players.

An example was how Chelsea's 5ft 9in left-back Marc Cucurella managed to flick on a corner, setting up Joao Pedro's equaliser, against a team playing with three centre-backs.

There was another moment at the end of the first half when midfielders Enzo Fernandez and Caicedo were allowed to play six or seven short passes between each other without being closed down.

That signalled the first sign of discontent for a side who have gone from having a fearsome home atmosphere to becoming an easy place to visit.

There is pressure on the players, manager and owner to put things right. After all, Julen Lopetegui was sacked in January after just 22 matches.

Graham Potter has a worse record than his predecessor, earning less than a point per game in his first 21 league fixtures.

West Ham boss Graham Potter, speaking to BBC Sport: "Incredibly disappointed of course with the result.

"A good start, scored a great goal and then conceded a cheap goal and that probably set the tone for the evening.

"We played a top side but the manner of the goals we conceded made it impossible for us. We have to do better.

"We have to dust ourselves down and prepare to play against Wolves. Keep going."

On needing new signings: "We will always look but its more fundamental than that, we have to make it harder for teams to score against us."

West Ham captain Jarrod Bowen, speaking to Sky Sports on his emotions after the game: "You can probably imagine. Fuming. Disappointing. All the emotions that come with being on the back of conceding eight goals in two games and not picking up a point yet.

"The goals were really cheap on our behalf. We didn't really make them work for those three from set-pieces, which we've always prided ourselves on over the years and a couple more finishes inside the six-yard box."

On putting things right: "It's a collective. When things are going well, it's easy to get individual awards, but when things aren't going so well, you have to point the finger at every single person because we're out there on the pitch.

"We have to look at ourselves. The players are out there playing on the pitch - the manager can't influence that, that's down to us. I don't think we're doing basic football well enough. I can tell you that because we've conceded eight in two.

"As captain, I'm fuming with the first couple of weeks and I share that responsibility and it's down to me to get a reaction from everyone."

Did you know?

• West Ham have conceded eight goals across their first two games of a top-flight campaign for the first time.

• Potter is the first Hammers boss in Premier League history to fail to earn double-figures points in his first 10 home games. His side have nine from two wins, three draws and five defeats.

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on West Ham's performance

What did you make of Chelsea's display?

Come back to this page on Saturday to find a selection of your replies