Jamie Carragher says West Ham’s call to move on from David Moyes is a ‘great decision for everybody’ but Paul Merson believes the Hammers are making a big and potentially costly mistake.
It was announced on Monday that Moyes, 61, would leave the Premier League club at the end of the season.
A large section of West Ham fans have been growing increasingly frustrated with Moyes despite the club’s European success under the Scot.
The Irons won their first major trophy for 43 years last season as Moyes guided West Ham to Europa Conference League glory.
But West Ham’s league form has suffered in recent weeks, with the side winning just one of their past ten games in all competitions and losing 5-0 to Chelsea at the weekend.
The east London side, who are currently ninth in the Premier League and likely to miss out on a fourth successive season in Europe, look set to hire Julen Lopetegui as Moyes’ replacement.
Discussing West Ham’s announcement, Liverpool legend Carragher told Sky Sports: ‘It’s a great decision for everybody.
‘It gives the West Ham fans the chance at the last home game to really send him off with a salute that he thoroughly deserves.
‘You’ve got to go back to 1980 under John Lyall when they won the FA Cup and got them to third in 1986. You think about how long ago that is, he’s been West Ham’s best manager.
‘To win a European trophy is pretty special. He deserved that for his managerial career, not just what he’s done at West Ham, he’s been a top Premier League manager.
‘He’ll be back in the Premier League soon enough, next season or the year after, because he knows how to navigate a season.
‘I can understand some of the frustration from the supporters with the style of football at times but results-wise, he’s done a brilliant job.’
Merson, meanwhile, disagrees with West Ham’s decision and says getting rid of Moyes, who managed Preston, Everton, Manchester United, Real Sociedad and Sunderland before his two spells with the Hammers, is ‘just madness’.
‘West Ham have got to be careful what they wish for,’ Merson said. ‘Moyes has pulled up trees there, won a European trophy. Solid seventh, eighth, ninth, top half of the table again.
‘I’m not saying it’ll happen overnight, what happened to Charlton, but I remember many years ago when I played their fans were asking to get rid of Alan Curbishley, saying it was boring, middle of the table, they wanted to kick on.
‘They’ve never been seen since. This manager is top, top drawer. They won a European trophy! It’s just madness.
‘I wouldn’t have got rid of him in a month of Sundays. You’ll get West Ham fans coming back, saying this and that, throwing every stat in the world. But I’ll just throw you the biggest stat of them all. He. Won. You. A. Trophy.
‘I don’t care all about this entertaining football, we don’t play that well, we should be doing better with these players. They won a trophy! You look at Arsenal, they’re unbelievable and they could end up with nothing.’
West Ham face relegation-battlers Luton Town this weekend before Moyes will take charge of his final game for the club against Manchester City on the last day of the season.
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