'Scratching my head': Jeff Stelling says he's baffled by how Julen Lopetegui is treating £25m West Ham player

It has not been an easy start to life at West Ham for Julen Lopetegui.

Despite an exciting summer transfer window – which saw over £100m spent on the likes of Niclas Fullkrug, Luis Guilherme and others – the Hammers sit 15th in the Premier League after a slow start to the 2024/25 campaign.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
15	West HamWest Ham	8	2	2	4	11	15	-4	8

There were also rumours that Lopetegui clashed with Mohammed Kudus – suggesting all is not well off the pitch as well as on the field.

Now – when speaking on talkSPORT – Jeff Stelling has questioned Julen Lopetegui for his treatment of a different player at West Ham.

Jeff Stelling puzzled as to why Julen Lopetegui is overlooking Crysencio Summerville

West Ham’s summer spending spree involved a £25m deal to take Crysencio Summerville from Leeds.

The Dutchman had just won the Championship Player of the Year award after scoring 21 goals and providing ten assists in 49 appearances last season.

However – despite this – the man from Rotterdam has only been given one Premier League start so far this season, with Lopetegui even leaving the West Ham No.7 on the bench for the entirety of August’s 2-0 win over Crystal Palace.

Speaking about the situation involving Summerville and also more of West Ham’s summer signings, Stelling said: “Fullkrug has been injured, Luis Guilherme, not injured. Paid £25m for him, he has played four minutes in the Premier League so far. Guido Rodriguez, Carlos Soler – who has not had a Premier League start.

“He doesn’t want to start Summerville for some reason, which has me scratching my head.”

Lopetegui is shooting himself in the foot at West Ham

TBR Football understand David Sullivan is concerned by how poorly Lopetegui has started the season at West Ham, although those in the boardroom at the London Stadium will not be rushed into a decision.

Should the Spaniard be sacked, many will point to his stubbornness as a key factor – he will have nobody to blame but himself.

As they say, insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results, and Lopetegui is hardly short of options when it comes to mixing his side up, as Stelling makes clear.

The 58-year-old has two exciting talents waiting for a proper chance in Summerville and Guilherme, while another expensive talent in the £35m Edson Alvarez has been benched, a man who could also spark a turnaround in results with his quality.

Hopefully, Lopetegui explores the depth of his squad from now on, or else it could cost him his job in east London.