Lopetegui and West Ham 'feels like a loveless marriage'

It was reported on Monday that West Ham were considering whether to sack Julen Lopetegui following a disappointing start to his tenure.

The board have held talks with Graham Potter about possibly replacing the Spaniard but as of yet Lopetegui remains in his position.

"Weirdly it has felt like it has been coming for a while," said New York Times Chief Football Correspondent Rory Smith on BBC Radio 5 Live's Monday Night Club.

"He has been under pressure since October and he has never really seemed like a great fit as there have been numerous low points already.

"It is hard to see it lasting long term, so it is just about who West Ham think they can get in to replace him.

"If there is no obvious upgrade available then maybe he sticks around a bit longer but it does really feel like a loveless marriage at this point.

"The board are known for not liking to pay managers compensation so that does limit who they attract, but for me there is no internal reflection of how they keep getting themselves into this situation and how they should be doing it all differently."

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