Julen Lopetegui responds to boos as West Ham manager explains Guido Rodriguez substitution | OneFootball

Hammers jeered off after 3-0 defeat to Chelsea on Saturday

Julen Lopetegui says West Ham fans have the right to boo their team and insists he is not concerned by how quickly the tide has turned at the start of his regime.

After a summer of heavy investment following David Moyes’s departure, the season began with a sense of optimism in east London but already the mood has soured.

“It’s normal,” Lopetegui said of the boos at the full-time whistle.

“You lost so they have the right to complain for sure. We know this. That’s why the only solution to change this is we have to do better.

“All of us, and the first is me, for sure. We have to change, we have to improve. It’s the start of the season, we have a lot of time to do this. In three days we have another match, another competition, we have to look forward.

“We have to be ready. To be honest, we have to change things and improve on this.”

Lopetegui’s decision to take winger Crysencio Summerville off midway through the second-half was also booed by large sections of the home crowd.

Summerville, starting a Premier League game for the first time since his summer move from Leeds, had looked lively during the first-half and was unfortunate not to win a penalty when pulled back by Wesley Fofana.

Guido Rodriguez was taken off before the break

Mike Egerton/PA Wire

“We were in a moment where we had to look to find an option and we decided to change him,” Lopetegui said of the substitution. “He was working well and I’m sure he wasn’t a bad player for us today.”

Lopetegui also moved quickly with his bench during the first-half, dragging off midfielder Guido Rodriguez inside 40 minutes and sending Tomas Soucek on, with Chelsea already 2-0 up.

“Yes, it was tactical,” he confirmed. “To change a player before half-time is not the fault of the player, it’s the fault of the coach.”