West Ham United have sacked head coach Nuno Espírito Santo with immediate effect following a review of the club’s start to the EFL Championship season.

The club announced the decision in a statement on its website on Tuesday, saying the board believed a change was necessary to keep the club’s objectives and expectations on track after a disappointing run of results.

The Portuguese, 52, leaves after back-to-back home defeats, a 3-2 loss to Southampton and a 3-1 defeat to West Bromwich Albion on Saturday, which left the Hammers eighth in the table, six points behind leaders Middlesbrough.

Nuno was appointed on September 27, 2025, on a three-year contract after leaving Nottingham Forest, replacing Graham Potter when West Ham were 19th in the Premier League, but he was unable to prevent relegation to the second tier for the first time since 2011.

Despite that, the club had opted to retain him for the new season, with West Ham tipped as favourites for automatic promotion, but the team has won only six of 13 league matches this season, drawing four and losing three.

The club confirmed that Assistant Head Coach Rui Pedro Silva and Goalkeeper Coach Rui Barbosa have also departed, thanking them for their hard work and commitment and wishing them well for the future.

In the meantime, former captain Mark Noble, Steve Potts and Gerard Prenderville will take temporary charge ahead of Wednesday evening’s Championship fixture at Cardiff City, while the club says the process of recruiting a new head coach is already underway, with Scott Parker reportedly in line to take over.