From Chaos to Clarity: How West Ham’s Season Was Rebuilt After Potter

West Ham players and fans have definitely endured a rollercoaster of emotions during the course of this season so far. It was a horrific start to the new campaign 10 league games in, only seven points accumulated and already a minus-10 goal difference. It looked as though West Ham’s fate for the season had already been decided. However, as we all know, anything can happen in football.

The Irons’ season didn’t just start badly it was actively sabotaged by months of confusion under Graham Potter.

From the opening weeks, it was clear something wasn’t right. Potter arrived with ideas, but no adaptation. He tried to impose a system that neither suited the squad nor the situation the club was in, and the result was football that was sterile, slow and completely toothless.

Under Potter, West Ham played like a team terrified of risk. Endless sideways passes. No tempo. No aggression. Absolutely no threat.

Matches drifted by with West Ham looking neat on the ball but utterly harmless. Worse still, there was no fight. When they went behind, heads dropped. When pressure came, the structure collapsed. It was possession for the sake of possession and it nearly dragged the club into a relegation abyss.

By the time Potter left in October, the damage was already done. Confidence was gone. Belief was shattered. The table made for grim reading. Survival looked like a myth, not a target.

Nuno’s Arrival: No Magic Wand, Just Structure

When Nuno Espírito Santo came in, anyone expecting an instant transformation was quickly reminded how deep the problems ran.

This wasn’t a flick-of-the-switch job.

Early performances under Nuno were still patchy, still nervous. Results didn’t immediately improve, and the scars of Potter’s tenure were obvious. Players were hesitant, unsure, and clearly still unlearning bad habits.

But since the turn of the year, everything has changed.

Nuno has gradually rebuilt West Ham from the ground up. Not with flashy football, but with structure, discipline and clarity. He stripped things back, focused on defensive solidity, and gave players defined roles.

West Ham stopped trying to be clever and started trying to be competitive.

The press became smarter. The defensive shape tightened. Transitions became quicker and more purposeful. Instead of waiting for games to happen, West Ham began forcing moments winning duels, attacking space and playing with intent.

And now, the table finally reflects that progress.

The Revival Is Real — But The Work Isn’t Done

West Ham have won three of their last five games, and suddenly the impossible looks achievable.

They now sit just three points off 17th place a position that felt completely out of reach earlier in the season. What once looked like a doomed campaign is now a genuine fight. And that alone is an indictment of how bad things were before.

This resurgence only reinforces the criticism of Potter.

The squad was never this poor. The problem was direction, confidence and a refusal to adapt.

Nuno didn’t fix everything overnight, but he gave West Ham something they hadn’t had all season: a plan that made sense.

There’s still work to do. This team isn’t safe yet, and the margin for error remains tiny.

But West Ham are finally alive.

Finally competitive.

Finally believing.

And after the mess they were left in, that alone feels like a minor miracle.