West Ham have announced the signing of both Kevin Nolan and Paul Nevin as backroom staff with the senior team. What can we expect from the new coaching additions to David Moyes’ team?
Kevin Nolan
A man who is familiar with the club, and who the supporters are very familiar with too, Kevin Nolan brings a hardnosed work ethic with an emphasis on hard work and physicality to the midfield. Having played 157 matches for the club, scoring 31 goals and adding 18 assists over that stretch of time, Nolan knows what the West Ham supporters want and can hopefully inspire the team to better performances.
Nolan does have managerial experience as well. The 37-year-old has had two stints as a gaffer, one for Leyton Orient and the other for Notts County. From January to April in 2016, Nolan managed Leyton Orient for 15 matches, winning 7 matches, drawing 2, and losing 6 for a 46.7% win rate. He followed this up with an 84 match stretch with Notts County in League Two from January 2017 to August 2018. Nolan had a 41.7 win percentage as manager here
"The lads had got back on the coach back to Nottingham. And I just said, 'Get them all back in.'"
— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) February 4, 2020
Kevin Nolan talks to @KellyCates about the punishments he'd hand down to his players at Notts County after bad defeats, and how Big Sam would do it at West Ham pic.twitter.com/VwWYUXlWBc
Hopefully, Nolan brings with him the attitude he showed in this interview. Keeping the Notts players after the game to go over individual and team failures, not in an effort to embarrass the players, but to show them what went wrong, why it went wrong, and how to never let it happen again. A revelation in the making.
Paul Nevin
The lesser-known of the duo, but the more experienced manager, Paul Nevin comes with a strong CV and can, like Nolan, make an instant impact in David Moyes’ managerial team. A career manager, 51-year-old Nevin has managed in six different leagues/systems, working his way up from the academy level to managing in the Premier League and in the England International system.
A huge asset to David Moyes, Nevin will likely look to involve youth in the team and provide coaching to the team’s younger players, helping them grow into first-team starters. This is a massive bonus to the Academy players who train with the first team, as well as the younger core that is being integrated and relied on for first-team stability.
Overall, this was long overdue and desperately needed at West Ham. David Moyes has been managing with just Alan Irvine and Xavi Valero since his appointment and has needed more backroom staff for some time. Nevin brings experience and Nolan brings history with the team. The duo is a great start to steadying the Hammers this season.