Who will replace Graham Potter? Five candidates to take over at West Ham | OneFootball

West Ham United are looking for a new manager having sacked Graham Potter on Saturday morning after just 25 games in charge.

The club cited worrying results and performances which failed to ‘match expectations’ as the reason for Potter’s dismissal just eight months after he replaced Julen Lopetegui.

The Hammers sit 19th in the Premier League with just one win from their opening five games with the other four results all being heavy defeats. They are on course to be relegated from the top flight if such form continues with only Burnley having a worse record since the start of the campaign.

The Irons are actively in the process of recruiting a new head coach and we’ve outlined five possible candidates who could take over at the London Stadium.

Nuno Espirito Santo

The odds-on favourite with the bookmakers. Nuno Espirito Santo is available after being dismissed from his position at Nottingham Forest earlier this year. Nuno guided Forest to seventh in the Premier League last season and has experience of the top-flight having spent six years as head coach of Wolves, Tottenham and Forest respectively. Nuno’s style leans towards counter-attacking football which could help make the Hammers defence more stable. The current rumours put Nuno as the frontrunner with the Portuguese potentially set to be in place for Monday’s match against Everton.

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Nuno Espirito Santo is the favourite to replace Graham Potter (John Walton/PA Wire)

Slaven Bilic

A former West Ham manager between 2015-17, Slaven Bilic is on the list of potential replacements and is available having left Saudi Pro League side Al Fateh in 2024. The Hammers have gone back to a former coach before with David Moyes having two successful spells at the club between 2017-2024 resulting in a European trophy. Bilic is also a former West Ham player and would receive a welcome return from a disgruntled fanbase.

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Could Slaven Bilic return to West Ham? (PA)

Gary O’Neil

The Independent has previous reported that former Wolves and Bournemouth boss Gary O’Neil was being considered by West Ham. O’Neil’s previous work in the top flight is highly respected by Premier League clubs especially in how he was able to manage different difficulties at both clubs. West Ham have issues on and off the field and O’Neil’s skill set seems to be suited to throw him straight into the mix at a club struggling to find its rhythm again.

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Gary O'Neil is respected in Premier League circles (REUTERS)

Sean Dyche

A potential outsider but the former Everton boss has been out of work since his dismissal last season. Sean Dyche has pedigree and experience of relegation battles having kept Burnley in the Premier League multiple times across a 10-year spell in charge before being brought in to stabilise the Toffees in 2023. A possible short term option for the London side in order to address immediate concerns on the pitch - such as conceding too many goals - but other candidates are favoured.

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Sean Dyche has experience of avoiding relegation from the Premier League (Zac Goodwin/PA Wire)

Michael Carrick

Michael Carrick made 136 appearances for West Ham over a five-year spell with the club during his playing career and left to join Manchester United on good terms. Following an caretaker spell as United manager in 2021, where he went unbeaten in all three of his matches in charge, he joined Championship club Middlesbrough and pulled them out of a relegation battle with 16 wins from 23 matches. Boro finished that season eighth but Carrick was sacked after a 10th place finish in his second year in charge.

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Former Middlesbrough manager Michael Carrick could be a long term option for the Hammers (Ian Hodgson/PA Wire)