West Ham tipped to appoint 47-y/o ex-Premier League star as future Nuno successor | OneFootball

Could Craig Bellamy be the next person to take charge at West Ham after Nuno?

Despite speculation over whether he was going to be replaced ahead of the 2026-27 season, Nuno Espirito Santo kept his job as West Ham head coach, and has been tasked with leading the east London outfit back to the Premier League.

Hired in late September 2025 to replace Graham Potter in the dugout of the London Stadium, Nuno did get the Hammers out of the top flight relegation zone last season on two separate occasions in November and April, only to drop back in there with a handful of matches remaining.

And whilst West Ham beat Leeds comprehensively on the final day of the campaign, rivals Tottenham pipped them to safety, leaving the Irons in the Championship for the first time since 2012.

Despite having relegation on his CV, Nuno has been given the chance to lead the club back at the first time of asking, but he will be wary that if he doesn't, given the squad he's got to work with, then he may be replaced in the dugout.

James Collins tips Craig Bellamy to be next West Ham boss

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If that were to happen, there'd be no shortage of suitors to succeed the Portuguese coach, and a player that racked up 214 appearances for the club across two stints - James Collins - already has a name in mind in the form of his former team-mate at both club and international level - Craig Bellamy.

"I’ve known him a long, long time. I think he needed to be that guy when he was playing. I think he said it to get the best out of himself," Collins told talkSPORT earlier this week.

"He’s gone into management. I think he speaks brilliantly. He speaks sense; he says the truth. If they haven’t played well, he’ll tell you, and what more do you want from a manager? Like I said, he’s young, he’s keen to learn, and I can see him at a big club.

"I'd love to see him one day — obviously West Ham are doing well — but I know he loves the football club and loved his time at West Ham when I was there with him. Who's to know in the future?"

West Ham fan verdict issued on potential Craig Bellamy return as manager

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Bellamy signed for West Ham in 2007 from Liverpool, in what at the time was a club-record £7.5 million acquisition, and despite only playing 26 times for the Hammers, he left a lasting impression on the fanbase before his £14 million move to Man City in January 2009.

His only stint in management has come with the Wales national team, where he was appointed in 2024 - he's yet to taste what being a club head coach is about, but FLW's United fan pundit, Ryan Horn, believes that Bellamy is an attractive post-Nuno candidate when the time comes.

"If he continues to do a decent job and we're in the position to do it, then yeah, I wouldn't be against it," Ryan told FLW.

"I just don't want to get someone in just because they played for the club, if that makes sense? You've got to have the right coach, that's why I wanted Michael Carrick because he did well at Middlesbrough on a shoestring of a budget, and he knows the club.

"But, obviously Man United kept him - there's a lot of younger managers out there at the moment that I would like, looking towards the future.

"But yeah, Bellamy's definitely someone I've spoken about - I think James Collins is on to something."

Craig Bellamy may not have done enough to be on West Ham's post-Nuno radar

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Bellamy interestingly decided to go down the international route first rather than club management, but he was unable to get the Dragons into the 2026 FIFA World Cup, eliminated in qualifying at the play-off stage at the hands of Bosnia.

He should have a better chance of getting Wales into Euro 2028, which will of course be hosted in the UK and the Republic of Ireland, but that should be his full focus until then, rather than potentially being involved in trying to get a club job.

The 47-year-old was linked with the Burnley vacancy over the summer, having previously been an assistant to Vincent Kompany at Turf Moor, but he turned down the chance to return to the Lancashire outfit and instead re-affirmed his commitment to leading his country.

Perhaps he saw the struggles ahead for the Clarets, who are currently bottom under new boss Nicky Hayen, but the West Ham job - even if it's not currently vacant - would be more attractive, but perhaps more demanding too.

Given Bellamy hasn't really achieved an awful lot with Wales so far, it's perhaps too soon to stick his name into the hat for the possibility of him being the next in-line to Nuno's job - stranger things have happened in the world of football, however.