It has been a very difficult start to the 2024-25 campaign for West Ham United so far.
The Hammers have picked up just four points from their opening five Premier League fixtures to be 14th in the standings.
Their worst defeat this season came last weekend against Chelsea who condemned them to a 3-0 defeat after an excellent brace from Nicolas Jackson.
Despite the poor results, The Athletic’s Roshane Thomas reports the players were in good spirits as they arrived for training on Tuesday ahead of their clash with Liverpool in the Carabao Cup.
However, the defence is their biggest concern with the Irons conceding first in their matches against Aston Villa, Manchester City, Fulham and Chelsea.
Summer arrival Max Kilman and Konstantinos Mavropanos have been first-choice centre-backs under Lopetegui this season. But Jean-Clair Todibo, who joined the club this summer on a season-long loan with an obligation to buy for £34 million, is also said to be in contention to start against Liverpool this week.
The Frenchman could partner Kilman in central defence as Mavropanos produced an awful display against Chelsea.
The 26-year-old pressed far too high and left gaping holes which were ruthlessly exploited by the Blues.
Todibo has only started once since arriving at the London Stadium and that came in their 1-0 win over Bournemouth in the EFL Cup last month. And even then, he was withdrawn at half-time against the Cherries by Lopetegui due to lack of fitness.
Stats from Transfermarkt
