West Ham sack head coach Nuno Espírito Santo
West Ham United have sacked head coach Nuno Espírito Santo, just over a year after he was given the job of getting the club back up from relegation. The Portuguese manager, 52, leaves with the club eighth in the Championship, England's second tier, six points behind leaders Middlesbrough.
Nuno was appointed in September 2025, after West Ham dismissed Graham Potter following nine months in charge. He had previously managed Nottingham Forest. His record at West Ham was modest: 12 wins from 37 matches. The club had been relegated from the Premier League at the end of the 2025-26 season, and in May the club kept faith with him anyway, as Reuters reported.
The final spell did not help his case. West Ham have won two of their last six games. They also lost two home matches in a row, going down 3-2 to Southampton and then 3-1 to West Bromwich Albion. Those defeats, according to the BBC, were the final push for the board.
Nuno's backroom team has also changed. Assistant head coach Rui Pedro Silva and goalkeeper coach Rui Barbosa have both left the club.
Because there is no permanent manager in place, three people will take charge for the Championship trip to Cardiff City on Wednesday night. Mark Noble, who captained West Ham for many years and is one of the club's best-known one-club players, will be joined by Steve Potts and Gerard Prenderville. Their job is to keep the team going until a permanent replacement arrives.
West Ham said the search for a new head coach has already begun. The club's interim chief executive, Karim Virani, was appointed in April, and the recruitment process is being run under his leadership. No name has been put forward publicly.
For the fans, the bigger question is how far the club can climb from here. Six points is a real gap, but the Championship season is long, and there are many matches still to play. The next appointment will decide whether West Ham's season turns around quickly or drifts into a second year of rebuilding.
