Former West Ham scout Mick Brown believes West Ham are set to  make a firm decision on the future of manager Julen Lopetegui “soon”, as reported by Football Insider

Brown told Football Insider exclusively that it is a “dangerous” time of year for managers as clubs start to feel the strain. The scout who was formerly chief scout at Manchester United was a senior scout at the London Stadium until June, when he left with David Moyes on the expiry of his contract.

Julen Lopetegui is under a lot of pressure after a second half collapse against bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur, which led to a demoralizing 4-1 defeat in North London. This continued a very poor start to the season for the Hammers who currently sit in 15th place with eight points in eight matches. They have also kept just one clean sheet in that time, away from home against the struggling Crystal Palace, while they conceded four to Tottenham and three against both Chelsea and Man City. As a result there is pressure from the West Ham boardroom and from the fans who are keen to see a turn in performances are spending so much money in the summer.

“The board will have to make a decision,” Brown told Football Insider.

“It’s the most dangerous time in the year, October and November, when the international breaks come along and clubs jump into making changes. The board members and directors start to panic and start to feel the pressure. I’d say ‘watch this space’ in terms of whether they sack him, because they’ll need to make a decision soon whatever they do.

“There have already been issues this season which will be a concern for the owners because of how heavily they backed him in the summer.

“They’ll be keen not to rush the decision, but the pressure is growing and they will have to make the call.”

A defeat on Sunday at home against Manchester United could be the beginning of the end for the Spaniard in charge of West, he would likely escape a narrow defeat, but a defeat against United and another away at Forest a week later could see an early end for the former Spain manager in East London.