Julen Lopetegui has confirmed that his decision to replace Guido Rodriguez in the first half of West Ham’s 3-0 loss to Chelsea was ‘tactical’ but insists it was ‘the fault of the coach’ rather than the player.
An inspired Nicolas Jackson scored twice before setting Cole Palmer up for a third as West Ham were comfortably beaten at the London Stadium, the Irons’ third defeat of the Premier League season.
The hosts gave themselves a mountain to climb as they allowed Jackson to complete his brace in the space of just 18 minutes – the fastest double scored by a Chelsea player in a London derby since Didier Drogba back in 2005.
With the Hammers struggling to turn the tide as the first period wore on, Lopetegui opted to take off summer signing Rodriguez, with Tomas Soucek coming on in the Argentina midfielder’s place in only the 38th minute.
Understandably, Rodriguez – who joined West Ham on a free transfer from Real Betis – looked deflated as he made his way off the field before taking his place on the bench.
In his post-match press conference, Lopetegui allayed fears that Rodriguez had picked up an injury and took full responsibility for West Ham’s dismal showing before the half-time break.
‘It was tactical. But when a coach changes one player before half-time, it is not the fault of the player, it is the fault of the coach, for sure,’ the Spaniard told reporters.
‘So it’s about me, it’s not about Guido.’
Lopetegui added: ‘It’s about me because maybe I can do better if I change one player before half-time. It’s about this.
‘It’s not only trying to watch the player, it’s about watching myself in these moments.’
A ‘very frustrated’ Lopetegui demanded more ‘consistency’ from his side in their performance, with a daunting trip to Liverpool awaiting the Hammers in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday night.
‘We are very, very frustrated today for sure because we had expectations in the match, we work a lot to prepare for this match,’ he continued.
‘I think I have to review again the match but I think it has been a very soft way to lose the game.
‘We suffered two early goals, we have to do better and we weren’t consistent. When you are not consistent against these kind of teams, you are going to have few opportunities to win.
‘We had chances but that is not important. The more important thing is the goals we conceded and we conceded three.
‘We had chances to score in the first half too but in the end it’s about being more consistent.
There were audible boos and jeers at the London Stadium as Crysencio Summerville was replaced in the second half and Lopetegui appeared to understand the frustration coming from the stands.
‘The only thing we have to say to the fans is thank you. Thank you for their support,’ he said.
‘But in the same way, we have to give them things and the only thing you can give is your best always.’
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