West Ham made an obvious £15m transfer mistake this summer and they're now paying the price - opinion

Today at 11:15 AM

West Ham United have certainly not enjoyed the start to the season they might have hoped for under Julen Lopetegui, who was meant to be a beacon of optimism after David Moyes.

The phrase, 'trust the process' seems to be the one pedalling out right now – West Ham aren't going to do anything hasty in regards to Lopetegui's future.

But fans must already be wondering – 'how far back do we need to go before we move forward?'

Judging by the investment in Tim Steidten and Lopetegui's plans this summer, the answer should probably be not very far.

West Ham have a better squad than they did when Moyes left in the summer, but they are now paying for one or two costly errors.

Serhou Guirassy was the striker West Ham needed, not Niclas Fullkrug

Amid all of West Ham's signings this summer, identifying a new starting striker was undoubtedly the most important, the club shouldn't be relying on Danny Ings once again.

But against Fulham in recent weeks, it was Ings that was on hand to save the day given that Niclas Fullkrug is currently injured, a familiar situation in the 31-year-old's career.

READ MORE: Julen Lopetegui's 'dream' target has been made available in boost for West Ham

That's not to say that signing Fullkrug was the worst decision, every football player suffers injuries, but West Ham did make a mistake not signing Serhou Guirassy from Stuttgart.

It was shared that West Ham made a late bid for Guirassy shortly before he signed for Borussia Dortmund, but their approach was too late.

Since, 28-year-old Guirassy, who moved to Dortmund for just £15m, is being hailed as the most complete striker the club have had since Robert Lewandowski.

Guirassy has scored two goals in three games for Dortmund, and it begs the question – why didn't West Ham act sooner?

Dortmund were seemingly delighted to replace Fullkrug with a striker who is three years younger and make profit in the process, a real mistake on West Ham's part.

Jean-Clair Todibo situation is just as confusing

Of course, the same principle can be applied to Jean-Clair Todibo who is yet to penetrate Loptegui's eleven.

Lopetegui said that he was still adapting when asked recently, a 24-year-old who cost West Ham even more than Fullkrug.

Perhaps both will come good with time and go on to have strong first seasons, but were these the smartest deals on West Ham's part? It seems not.

According to reports, Lopetegui might actually be fighting to save his job in the upcoming gameweeks – a remarkable turn of events.

A tough period for West Ham and their new manager, but definitely one that they can turn around.