BBC pundit Alan Shearer has praised West Ham boss Julen Lopetegui for the substitutions he made at half-time against Manchester United.

The Hammers could have been three or four goals down based on the chances that the Red Devils created and, despite it still being 0-0, Lopetegui put on three substitutions to shake things up. Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast, Shearer said that the decision paid off:

“Well done to Lopetegui because his team were rotten in the first half. They were awful but he made three changes at half-time.”

“Came out [after the interval] with a lot more energy. Created some more chances. Were much better in that second half.”

The changes made a huge impact on West Ham’s performance

Lopetegui hooked Konstantinos Mavropanos, Lucas Paqueta and Carlos Soler at half-time, with Jean-Clair Todibo, Tomas Soucek and Crysencio Summerville taking their places.

The improvement was almost instant following the break, with Summerville (in particular) playing a crucial role as he scored the Irons’ opening goal on 74 minutes.

Another substitute, Danny Ings (who had replaced Michail Antonio a few minutes earlier), played a part in the build-up to Summerville’s goal too.

Lopetegui remains under pressure

Despite the victory against Man United taking West Ham above the Red Devils into 13th place, there are still plenty of doubts about the head coach.

The abject display in the first half at the weekend has led many to question whether Lopetegui is managing to get his ideas across to his players.

Fans will be hoping that his team can build on this win when they take on Nottingham Forest this Saturday. A defeat will put Lopetegui under scrutiny once again. There are already rumours that the club are considering potential replacements so his job is certainly not safe.

Find out who is in West Ham’s first-team squad for the 2024/2025 season here