5 reasons West Ham will finish above Manchester United this season

LONDON, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 29: Jose Mourinho, Manager of Manchester United gestures following the third West Ham Goal as Manuel Pellegrini, Manager of West Ham United celebrates during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Manchester United at London Stadium on September 29, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 29: Jose Mourinho, Manager of Manchester United gestures following the third West Ham Goal as Manuel Pellegrini, Manager of West Ham United celebrates during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Manchester United at London Stadium on September 29, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
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LONDON, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 29: Jose Mourinho, Manager of Manchester United gestures following the third West Ham Goal as Manuel Pellegrini, Manager of West Ham United celebrates during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Manchester United at London Stadium on September 29, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 29: Jose Mourinho, Manager of Manchester United gestures following the third West Ham Goal as Manuel Pellegrini, Manager of West Ham United celebrates during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Manchester United at London Stadium on September 29, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images)

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Pellegrini is better than whoever United will get as caretaker

United have announced that for the rest of the season there will be a caretaker manager in charge of the club. That’s likely to be former striker Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Whilst the Norweigan was a top striker and has managerial success in Scandinavia, I don’t think you can argue he is in the same league as Pellegrini as a manager.

I have long campaigned for recognition that managers shouldn’t take all the brunt when things are going poorly, or all the recognition when it’s going well. But Pellegrini has changed the setup and style at West Ham to a point where it is almost unrecognisable to the past few seasons. The last season at the Boleyn the players were fuelled by the fans’ desire to get something from the year. Now they seem to be working for the managers’ plan, which is far more sustainable.

I think the new caretaker manager will get United playing with a bit more freedom than under Mourinho, but I don’t think there’s much wiggle room at the moment in terms of squad quality because of issues in the dressing room and behind the scenes. There needs to be a serious clear out at the club and a revamp of the structure. In that time the Hammers should try their best to sneak in ahead of the reds. They certainly have the squad to do so.