Former footballer Shaun Wright-Phillips has been speaking enthusiastically about new Hammers boss Graham Potter, describing himself as “a massive Potter fan”.
Wright-Phillips described the West Ham job as the “perfect job for him” and thinks that he has the pedigree to get West Ham playing "sexy football", something Julen Lopetegui lacked.The former Manchester City and Chelsea winger explained what lessons Potter would have learned during a nightmare seven-month spell at Stamford Bridge and what his immediate objectives will be for the remainder of the season.
"I'm a massive fan," admitted Wright-Phillips, the son of former Hammer Ian Wright, talking to Genting Casino. "I loved watching his Brighton team play. We only saw flashes of that at Chelsea.
"He couldn’t turn down the Chelsea job at that stage of his career, it was something he had to go and get his teeth into. The stars weren't aligned for him at Stamford Bridge. There was too much going on in the club. Too many players. He couldn't get the players that he wanted. The club were buying players for him.
"But I think that West Ham is the perfect job for him. Lopetegui went in and he wanted them playing football from the back, but I don’t think he had the experience of trying to do that in the Premier League - whereas Potter has been doing that in the Premier League for a very long time.
"He knows the way to do it, but with a way that the players are buying into."
And Wright-Phillips believes he has already witnessed West Ham playing in a vastly altered fashion to that under which they laboured during the brief Lopetegui reign.
"Against Villa in the FA Cup, even though they lost, I saw a completely different West Ham team playing out from the back," he said. "They didn't just always play it from the back, they went direct when they had to.
"I would say that if there's anything that Potter learned from his Chelsea experience, it’s that if the pass is an on, don't be scared of going direct.
"It’s a small sample size, but I'm enjoying watching West Ham play again now. They play quicker. [Lucas] Paqueta feels like he's enjoying it again. It feels like they're moving the ball a lot quicker and having fun. I'm looking forward to seeing what comes next, especially when [Jarrod] Bowen gets fully fit.
And Wright-Phillips also believes being at a club like West Ham will afford Potter greater time in which to deliver his version of attractive and - hopefully -winning football which, he believes, could yet lead to a top half finish this season.
"Right now, it’s all about getting points on the board and not getting dragged into that relegation battle," he insisted. "I think after you cross that bridge, then he can push on from there. Just keep picking up points.
"I imagine that would be his only target, get enough points to steer away from that relegation zone, staying clear of that. If they can do that with plenty of games to spare, then I think he will be targeting a top ten finish."
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