One of the West Ham United managerial targets, Mauricio Pochettino or Thomas Tuchel, has refused to discuss the option of succeeding David Moyes, according to the Daily Mail.
The Hammers boss is reportedly in serious danger of facing the sack before taking on relegation rivals Everton on Saturday (21 January) after a winless run of seven matches in the Premier League. [Daily Mail, 16 January
Moyes is in an extremely precarious position as things stand, with his side falling into the dreaded relegation zone following their 1-0 defeat to Wolves – with a total of just 15 points from 19 games.
Both Tuchel and Pochettino have appeared as dream targets for the East London club, but the Daily Mail (January 17, page 71) has reported they are “unrealistic” options, with one of the pair refusing even to discuss the matter.
The report said: “The ambition to attract a top-tier coach to lead West Ham into the future remains strong, although one source described those aspirations as unrealistic.
“Mauricio Pochettino and Thomas Tuchel are obvious candidates, but why would either join West Ham?
“One is understood to have already declined the opportunity to even discuss replacing Moyes.”
Always a stretch
It was always going to be a long shot at luring either of the world-class managers to West Ham United, no matter how much money was thrown in their direction.
Tuchel and Pochettino are both Champions League-level managers, and the question begs, why would they give up the opportunity to return to this level and take up a relegation scrap instead?
Yes, the Hammers have a hugely talented squad that should be nowhere near the drop zone, but the reality is that they have 19 games to scrap their way to survival – not something either manager would be keen on doing.
Unfortunately, both respective managers wouldn’t want to hinder their managerial resume with a relegation, even if it wasn’t entirely their fault.
If they did get relegated with the Hammers, it would take years to restore their pedigree at the top of the managerial game. For the moment, the club must trust Moyes to get his team firing and propel themselves away from the clutches of the drop zone.
