Why Graham Potter is still paying for mistakes of West Ham predecessors

West Ham are already facing a long season with some fans fearing a relegation battle and while Graham Potter has fronted up on his need to do better, the squad is simply not deep enough to thrive

Graham Potter understands how this industry works. So after suffering through his West Ham side’s latest humiliation against Chelsea on Friday night, he was under illusions that not much more freedom would be afforded without both results and performances improving quickly.

“You are under pressure all the time in these jobs, in this situation, that is how it is,” he said after witnessing his team ship five goals thanks to a series of shambolic defensive errors. “I know the territory, I know what comes with poor results and I accept that responsibility.”

This summer was meant to have seen Potter, who arrived midway through the last campaign as a replacement for the shambolic Julen Lopetegui reign, implement his vision.

And during pre-season the noises were somewhat positive as Niclas Fullkrug spoke about a happy changing room and Lucas Paqueta was cleared of wrongdoing in his high-profile FA case.

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But it has all come crashing down after two games that have seen eight goals conceded in addition to only a whiff of attacking cohesion.

Potter’s record of five wins from 21 since landing in East London is undeniably unsustainable and he is the club’s first manager in the Premier League era to fail to reach 10 points from his first 10 home matches – winning just two and drawing three.

He rightly fronted up around his coaching errors after hearing a chorus of boos familiar to anyone who frequently steps inside London Stadium. But West Ham’s woes are about far more than how the team is set up or the personnel chosen to execute a tactical plan.

“It was too easy to score against us so I take my responsibility and I have to do better,” Potter added. “That is the case with all the players. They are honest and want to do more than they are at the moment.

“I don’t want to say it’s a lack of fight, I know the players care and are desperate to do well. I know they want to do better than we are. Sometimes in football and life you hit a patch and no doubt about it has been a tough week. We have had a smash on the nose.”

Yet a look at the options at his disposal also shows Potter has been dealt a tough hand at a club still paying for the mistakes of former decision-makers – not least the German transfer guru Tim Steidten, who oversaw a brief reign of heavy spending on players simply not up to scratch.

With nine days left in the transfer window, West Ham need to bolster their squad because the team is far weaker than the one Potter finished last season with.

Mohamed Kudus has not been replaced, increasing the burden on star man Jarrod Bowen to produce, while new goalkeeper Mads Hermansen has so far looked like a downgrade.

Max Kilman, last summer’s big-money arrival from Wolves, has failed to shore up the defence alongside a revolving cast of partners.

The midfield is devoid of pace, permitting more athletic opponents an easy route through the heart of the team. Bowen also deserves better and it was hard not to have sympathy when he spoke so passionately about where things are going wrong.

‘[I’m feeling] all the emotions that come with being on the back of conceding eight goals in two games and not picking up a point,” he told Sky Sports.

“We have to look at ourselves. The manager has come in but it’s the players are on the pitch and he can’t influence it. We are not doing basic football well enough, I can tell you that because we’ve conceded eight goals in two games.”

Those words are eerily similar to what he uttered several times last season when things were not going well.

Twelve months ago there was a lot of excitement around how Lopetegui could help the club level up from David Moyes ’ hugely successful reign. Those aspirations soon turned into relegation concerns that were eased thanks to the inadequacies of the bottom three more than a huge uptick under Potter.

Now the mood is already pessimistic with West Ham fans who were becoming used to Europe fretting about a long, dark winter of scrapping for points.

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