West Ham predictions 2024/25: Premier League finish, top goalscorer and season preview
- Julen Lopetegui is in charge at West Ham having succeeded David Moyes
- Moyes oversaw ninth-place finish in Premier League last season
- East London club have been busy in the transfer market
David Moyes will be remembered as the greatest West Ham United manager of modern times, but many believed a refresh was required in east London. Step forward, Julen Lopetegui.
The Spaniard arrives with a fairly lofty reputation following his exploits with Sevilla and a brief stint at Wolves means West Ham's new touchline marauder has Premier League experience.
The Hammers have certainly appeased their exotic new coach by overseeing an incredibly busy and exciting transfer window, but will Lopetegui's shiny new toys coalesce to have West Ham challenging for the European spots again?
Here's 90min's season preview of West Ham's 2024/25 campaign.
West Ham's performance in the last five seasons
West Ham have endured back-to-back indifferent domestic campaigns, but their exploits in Europe under Moyes made their Premier League malaise more than bearable.
The Hammers returned to Europe off the back of a sixth-place finish in 2020/21 and Moyes' pragmatic outfit failed to disappoint on the continental stage. Europa League semi-finalists in 2021/22, West Ham then went on to win the Europa Conference League in 2023 - their first European trophy since 1965.
There will be no magical European nights for supporters to enjoy during Lopetegui's debut campaign which does put pressure on the Spaniard to deliver domestically.
Season | Premier League | FA Cup | EFL Cup | Europe |
|---|---|---|---|---|
2023/24 | 9th | QF | R3 | Europa League QF |
2022/23 | 14th | R5 | R3 | Conference League Winners |
2021/22 | 7th | R5 | QF | Europa League SF |
2020/21 | 6th | R5 | R4 | - |
2019/20 | 16th | R4 | R3 | - |
West Ham 2024/25 squad numbers
West Ham's new boys have picked their numbers for 2024/25 and there's no doubt the club's fresh faces will be popular picks for supporters' shirts.
Jean-Clair Todibo (6), Crysencio Summerville (7), Niclas Fullkrug (11), Luis Guilherme (17), Guido Rodriguez (24) and Max Kilman (26) are among the names who constitute the Hammers' busy window.
James Ward-Prowse has switched from seven to eight, while Maxwell Cornet will now don 22 having previously worn 17 at the London Stadium.
Number | Player |
|---|---|
1 | Lukasz Fabianski |
3 | Aaron Cresswell |
4 | Kurt Zouma |
5 | Vladimir Coufal |
6 | Jean-Clair Todibo |
7 | Crysencio Summerville |
8 | James Ward-Prowse |
9 | Michail Antonio |
10 | Lucas Paqueta |
11 | Niclas Fullkrug |
14 | Mohammed Kudus |
15 | Konstantinos Mavropanos |
17 | Luis Guilherme |
18 | Danny Ings |
19 | Edson Alvarez |
20 | Jarrod Bowen |
21 | Wes Foderingham |
22 | Maxwell Cornet |
23 | Alphonse Areola |
24 | Guido Rodriguez |
26 | Max Kilman |
27 | Nayef Aguerd |
28 | Tomas Soucek |
29 | Andy Irving |
33 | Emerson Palmieri |
42 | Kaelan Casey |
61 | Lewis Orford |
*Numbers subject to change before end of transfer window
West Ham summer transfers
In
Player | Joined From | Fee |
|---|---|---|
Max Kilman | Wolves | £40m |
Niclas Fullkrug | Borussia Dortmund | £27m |
Luis Guilherme | Palmeiras | £25.5m |
Crysencio Summerville | Leeds | £25m |
Aaron Wan-Bissaka | Man Utd | £15m |
Guido Rodriguez | Real Betis | Free transfer |
Wes Foderingham | Sheffield United | Free transfer |
Jean-Clair Todibo | Nice | Loan deal |
Out
Player | Club Joined | Fee |
|---|---|---|
Flynn Downes | Southampton | £18m |
Said Benrahma | Lyon | £13m |
Thilo Kehrer | Monaco | £9.5m |
Nathan Trott | FC Copenhagen | £1.5m |
Ben Johnson | Ipswich | Free transfer |
Angelo Ogbonna | Released | Free transfer |
Divin Mubama | Released | Free transfer |
Kalvin Phillips | Man City | End of loan |
West Ham 2024/25 kits
Home kit
Away kit
OFFICIAL: West Ham United’s Away Kit for the 2024/25 season! ⚒️#WHUFC pic.twitter.com/b7ufKC3N6s
— West Ham Street (@WestHamStreet) July 8, 2024
Third kit
⬜️| @WestHam 3rd 24/25
— The Shirt Union (@TheShirtUnion) August 10, 2024
Lovely stuff from @umbro here with touches of claret and gold on a white base.
Woven into the shirt’s fabric is a jacquard featuring Umbro's iconic double diamond logo as well as the Irons’ stylised Hammer symbol. 🙌 pic.twitter.com/ReENx0O9Xr
West Ham predicted top goalscorer
Lopetegui will hope new arrival Niclas Fullkrug can come in and operate as his leading man right away. The Spaniard is unlikely to appreciate Michail Antonio's technical limitations and won't want to use the Jamaica international all that regularly.
However, Fullkrug is set to function as a facilitator while leading West Ham's line and won't be overly prolific. The Germany international scored 12 Bundesliga goals for Borussia Dortmund last season and is a shrewd addition for the Hammers, but it's their wide players who'll likely do much of the scoring.
There's no reason why Jarrod Bowen can't produce similar numbers to 2023/24 down the right, with the England international likely to benefit from Fullkrug's arrival. There are question marks over Mohammed Kudus' best role within the new manager's framework, but the Ghanaian star has the capacity to enjoy a productive year two having dazzled in spurts last season.
West Ham predicted Premier League finish
On paper, West Ham have excelled themselves in the transfer market, but that doesn't necessarily mean the Irons are guaranteed to build on their ninth-place finish last season.
What happened the last time the club hired an exotic name in the hope they'd oversee a stylistic alteration more fitting of the supporters' desires? Manuel Pellegrini led West Ham to tenth in the 2018/19 season following sky-high expectations.
There is a sense that history might repeat itself in 2024/25 and it won't take long for Hammers fans to realise Lopetegui's ideals don't drastically differ from Moyes'. Expect West Ham to build up at a slower pace and offer superior defensive resilience compared to last season, but supporters are unlikely to enjoy a brand of football previously unseen at the London Stadium.
The high expectations are setting supporters up for disappointment, but West Ham will not endure a woeful season. They might underwhelm, though.
West Ham 2024/25 Premier League prediction - 9th
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