Why West Ham chose Nuno Espirito Santo revealed by sources as appointment confirmed

West Ham United have announced the arrival of Nuno Espirito Santo as their new head coach following the departure of Graham Potter, with sources revealing to TEAMtalk why the Portuguese quickly became their top target.

West Ham sacked Potter earlier on Saturday after a poor start to the season which has left the club 19th in the Premier League table. Under Potter, the Irons won just one out of five league games, losing the other four and conceding a league-high 13 goals in the process.

In a club statement, West Ham said: ‘Results and performances over the course of the second half of last season and the start of the 2025/26 season have not matched expectations, and the board of directors believe that a change is necessary in order to help improve the team’s position in the Premier League as soon as possible.

‘The club can confirm that assistant coach Bruno Saltor, first team coaches Billy Reid and Narcis Pelach, lead goalkeeper coach Casper Ankergren, and goalkeeper coach Linus Kandolin have also left with immediate effect.

‘The board would like to thank Graham and his coaching staff for their hard work during their time with the Hammers and wish them every success for the future.’

Potter had been expecting to take charge of West Ham for their trip to Everton on Monday night, aiming to turn both his and the club’s fortunes around. But West Ham have acted quickly to replace Potter with Nuno following the latter’s successful – and eventful – spell at Nottingham Forest.

Sources state that West Ham identified Nuno as the best candidate and after making firm contact it became clear that if they made a proper commitment to him then it was possible they could secure his signature.

There had been some consideration around finding someone to just get them through the season, but this is also a moment when they cannot gamble. They need someone who is proven and can make an instant impact.

The club wanted the next boss to have either a bond to West Ham or proven credentials in the league and with Nuno they have someone the fanbase can trust. He also has a personality and drive they will be able to connect to. Slaven Bilic was a serious contender behind him.

The timing of it is a surprise, especially after Potter was carrying out his usual duties on Friday and responding to questions about becoming a meme.

But ultimately him and departing head of recruitment Kyle Macaulay have totally failed to live up to the expectations of the job. They were under pressure from the first game of the season and it has gone as badly as some figures inside the club feared it would.

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Nuno Espirito Santo looking to replicate Forest success

Nuno will be confident about turning the situation around. His four-month spell at Tottenham Hotspur did not go to plan but he has had impressive spells at Wolverhampton Wanderers and Forest either side of that.

Nuno helped Wolves gain promotion to the Premier League before finishing seventh in their first season back in the top flight, qualifying them for the Europa League.

More recently, the 51-year-old guided Forest to a seventh-placed league finish, which ended the club’s 30-year wait for European qualification.

Nuno improved players such as Anthony Elanga, Chris Wood, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Elliot Anderson, while his counter-attacking style of play caused opposition teams all sorts of problems.

Despite all he achieved at the City Ground, Nuno had a turbulent relationship with Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis.

The Greek businessman confronted Nuno on the pitch following their 2-2 draw with rivals Leicester City in May.

In the build up to his departure from Forest, Nuno admitted his relationship with Marinakis was ‘not the same’.

Marinakis sacked Nuno on September 9, and the former goalkeeper will now aim to prove him wrong by succeeding at West Ham.

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