‘Stick together’ – but will Potter get more time at West Ham?

For the second successive home game at London Stadium, West Ham have finished with many of their fans having left long before the final whistle.

A 3-0 loss to Tottenham on Saturday was greeted by boos from those still inside the ground at full-time.

Two defeats, eight goals conceded and just the solitary goal scored on home soil makes for miserable reading for manager Graham Potter that is only going to increase the pressure he is under.

But afterwards, the former Chelsea boss remained defiant.

“I understand because the scoreline is the scoreline and I understand why people are upset,” he told Sky Sports.

West Ham fans will have their own thoughts on this question, but the statistics do not make for pleasant reading:

West Ham made five signings in the summer, with highly rated full-back El Hadji Malick Diouf, goalkeeper Mads Hermansen and former Newcastle striker Callum Wilson among those to arrive.

Despite bolstering his defensive options that has been the main concern for West Ham this season.

Aside from the alarming number of goals they have conceded, it is also the type they are letting in.

“We conceded nine or 10 set-pieces before the goal [against Tottenham] and defended them well,” said Potter.

“We made a mistake at the far post and got punished.”

But for ex-Newcastle goalkeeper Shay Given, it is not just about the poor start to the season but more the poor form that has been going on longer.

“Everyone said judge Graham Potter when he’s had a full pre-season and a chance to get his own players in, but there’s been no improvement,” he told BBC Sport.

Seeing the stadium half empty in the second half, just like it was against Chelsea, will worry the West Ham hierarchy.

BBC Sport’s chief football news reporter Simon Stone:

Even when they are being subjected to the kind of criticism they are getting at the moment, West Ham’s ownership tend not to go in for knee-jerk reactions when it comes to dealing with managers.

Chairman David Sullivan is more likely to give someone a game or two extra rather than act when there is still a possibility the situation might be pulled round.

Clearly though, heavy home defeats by two of the club’s fiercest rivals and slipping into the bottom three is not a good look, especially when Potter’s appointment last season failed to trigger the improvement hoped for.

If there is a slight positive as far as Potter is concerned, it comes from knowing we are still incredibly early into the new season.

Julen Lopetegui collected only five points from his first six Premier League games in charge last season and it was January before he was sacked. In 2022-23, West Ham collected five points from seven games with David Moyes in charge.

The secondary point is that West Ham made four signings between 29 August and the transfer deadline closing two days later. Given there was an international break in between, how much time has Potter had to work with his new-look squad?

Next week, unbeaten Crystal Palace visit London Stadium for a game where huge demonstrations against the ownership are planned. If that game doesn’t go well, a tense atmosphere could turn toxic.

After that it’s a trip to Merseyside and a meeting with Moyes’ improving Everton before a trip to Arsenal, where West Ham have won on their past two visits, including under Potter in February.

Bonny: Graham Potter? At this rate, even Harry Potter would struggle to work his magic. This has relegation written all over it.

Matt: 11 goals (and counting) conceded in four games is relegation waiting to happen. For all the owners need to leave for West Ham to be a success, the inability to defend so far this season has to sit with Graham Potter.

Andy: West Ham were poor under Moyes, poor under Lopetegui and poor under Potter. The manager isn’t the issue. Moyes is doing well at Everton because they give him a wage budget and back him with transfers. West Ham do neither, for any manager.