Watch closely West Ham, 'shambolic' Burnley are a cautionary tale for Kretinsky

There is nothing moody football fans hate more than being told ‘it’s only a game’ or ‘don’t worry, it could be worse’. West Ham United lost 3-2 at home to Southampton on Saturday, and suddenly an immediate return to the Premier League feels less certain.

Familiar failings re-emerged for Nuno Espirito Santo as The Saints raced into a 2-0 lead inside eleven minutes at the London Stadium. It was a nightmare start from which they would never recover, despite recording a league-high 29 shots on goal.

West Ham slipped to third in the Championship table as a result. Questions are being asked of Nuno Espirito Santo once again, though Hammers News have been informed that Daniel Kretinsky will not be influenced by fan sentiment.

Nicky Hayen, relieved of his duties by Burnley following 14 dismal matches in charge, was not quite so fortunate.

If patience had ran dry among the Clarets fans weeks ago, then a highly-unpopular board led by Alan Pace – who himself was greeted with demands of a departure by a furious visiting support – finally got the message after a 4-1 thrashing at Lincoln City. The very same Lincoln who West Ham thrashed 6-0 a week earlier, albeit with two early red cards.

And, at the risk of immediately going back on our word and irritating the very same fanbase whose frustrations we totally understand, it could be worse.

Burnley and West Ham were both Premier League teams next season. There is a very real chance that there will be two divisions separating the claret and blue cousins next term, though.

And though Kretinsky remains a divisive figure among West Ham fans, Burnley would snap your hands off if you offered them a swap in the boardroom.

“Burnley fans are living a nightmare,” EFL oracle Ali Maxwell says on the Not the Top 20 podcast. “Their team is in the Championship relegation zone, with eight points from 12 games. This is a team that was in the Premier League last season, currently playing like a mid-table League One side at best. And that’s where they’re going to end up if they don’t sort this out.

“Clearly, there’s a huge issue at Burnley more widely, and it comes from the very top. The owners have had a terrible time over the last few years, and the fans are pretty clear that this is an issue caused by them.

“Let’s remember that their takeover of Burnley was a debt-leveraged takeover. What does that mean? It was financed with borrowing secured against Burnley and its assets – the very thing Premier League clubs have since voted to ban, the thing we know is just a horrendous practice to exist in football, a really worrying thing.

“When things go wrong, that can cause huge issues. And guess what? Burnley’s debt, which was £65 million according to the latest accounts, is now £142 million. So clearly, relegation to League One could be catastrophic. Forget the team losing six of their first 12 games; this is fully existential in the long term.”

Burnley are, in some ways, the anti-West Ham. They have done what the Hammers decided against. They sacked an under-fire manager, albeit one with a much worse record than Nuno after twelve games. Burnley signed a 39-year-old Jamie Vardy in what now looks like a desperate attempt at a short-term quick fix.

West Ham thought about and then decided against offering a contract to the Leicester legend. Vardy has since scored one goal in five Championship games, with the Not the Top 20 hosts far from convinced that he is still capable of contributing efficiently at this level.

What’s more, while West Ham have fallen behind eight times in the first-half across their 15 matches in league and cup, Burnley have gone in front eight times out of 12 in the second-tier.

Until that Saints reverse, West Ham were making a name for themselves as the Championship’s comeback kings. Six points salvaged from losing positions. Burnley, in contrast, have taken the lead eight times and have managed to lose four of those games.

“For me, there’s no getting away from the fact – and this isn’t normally my kind of analysis – that there is and has to be a massive psychological issue affecting the group as a whole,” Maxwell adds, as The Telegraph report that Rob Edwards and Carlos Corberan have both given the Turf Moor gig the cold shoulder.

“This Burnley team has scored first in eight of their 12 league games this season. No team in the Championship has scored first in more of their games this season than Burnley. That’s generally not the sign of a team set up horrifically, whose manager has no idea how to start games or put together a game plan.

“So that gives me some sympathy with Hayen. It’s true that games last 90 minutes, though, and obviously, it hasn’t gone well from that point.

“They’ve conceded 25 goals, which is the most in the Championship. They’ve given up the second-highest big chances. So, they are legitimately shambolic defensively, and that alone is probably reason to change the manager, because you will get relegated with those stats over the course of a full season.”

Yes, West Ham may fall short in their ambition of an automatic promotion spot. For Burnley, though, the spectre of successive relegations is looming large. It’s not like we haven’t seen examples of this happening in the recent past either. See Leicester City just last season. Also, Luton Town in 2025, Sunderland in 2018.

“I am really concerned for Burnley right now,” says Not the Top 20 co-host George Elek, before adding damningly; “I think there is a huge chance they will be playing League One football next season.”