David Moyes has been a successful West Ham manager. He has established the London Stadium outfit as a force to be reckoned with in the Premier League and led the club to its first European title by winning the Europa Conference League last season. This season, the Hammers have made the quarter-finals of the Europa League.
West Ham’s continental run is likely to end there with Bayer Leverkusen holding a 2-0 advantage from last week’s first leg. Xabi Alonso’s team is fresh from clinching the Bundesliga title on Sunday and will almost certainly prove too strong for the Hammers even if they have home advantage on Thursday.
This should mark the end of the Moyes era at the London Stadium. Even if West Ham somehow pull off a sensational comeback to make the final four of the Europa League, the 60-year-old should be shown the exit door at the end of the season. It’s time for West Ham to aim for even better.
Under Moyes, West Ham has assembled the most talented squad in the club’s recent history. Close to €400m has been spent in the transfer market over the last three years with star players like Mohammed Kudus, Edson Alvarez, Lucas Paqueta and James Ward-Prowse lured to the London Stadium.
Moyes, however, is naturally conservative in his approach. This helped the Hammers punch above their weight for a period of time when their squad wasn’t as talented as that of other clubs around them, but this is no longer the case. West Ham should be able to hold its own against some of the strongest teams in the Premier League.
Other Premier League clubs have been more ambitious in their recent managerial appointments. Crystal Palace, for instance, hired Oliver Glasner after firing Roy Hodgson. Glaser achieved great success in the Bundesliga with Eintracht Frankfurt and is already imposing a new tactical identity on the Eagles.
Brighton hired Roberto De Zerbi last season and the Italian has made a profound impact on the English south coast, turning the Seagulls into one of the most entertaining teams in the Premier League. Aston Villa also made a managerial change last season, appointing Unai Emery and are now in contention to finish in the top four and qualify for the Champions League.
Graham Potter has been linked with the West Ham job in the past. The Hammers’ interest in Paulo Fonseca is also well-known and it’s entirely possible they could re-ignite that interest at the end of the season. Whoever West Ham settle on as its first-choice, the time has come for the club to gamble on achieving even more.