The most iconic picture of West Ham’s new coach Julen Lopetegui is not of him lifting the Europa League trophy with Sevilla, or even wearing the goalkeeping jerseys of Real Madrid or Barcelona (he played for both teams).
It’s of him standing next to his dad, who holds aloft his sisters, one in each hand. Champion stone-lifter Jose Antonio, now 94 years old, remains Lopetegui’s greatest inspiration.
He says his father taught him the values of hard work and perseverance that have stood him in good stead. They were the values that got him through a tough period when he lost the two biggest jobs in Spanish football in the space of just a few months.
On both occasions there was a sense of injustice. With the Spain National team he was a victim of the whims of the since disgraced president Luis Rubiales. Then at Real Madrid he fell foul of the club’s notorious impatience. But there was little crying over the episodes and his father would not have it any other way.
‘He was very recognised in stone-lifting in an era when it was much bigger than it is now and you could make a living from it,’ Lopetegui says. ‘He was a great athlete in various sports but he didn’t play football. In fact, I’m the black sheep of the family because my brother was a Basque pelota player for many years at a high professional level.’
Julen Lopetegui pictured with his father, champion stone lifter Jose Antonio, who is holding his sisters aloft
Lopetegui managed to guide Wolves to safety and is now set to return to the Premier League
He says his father was all about ‘sacrifice and not looking for excuses’ and that came through in the way Lopetegui junior bounced back in management by winning a Europa League at Sevilla after the unfortunate experiences with Spain and Madrid.
In 2018 he had the Spanish national team on a 20-game unbeaten run going into the Russia World Cup but on the eve of the showpiece, Real Madrid announced he would be taking over at the Bernabeu after the tournament, and Rubiales sacked him for negotiating with them.
There had been 14 victories and six draws with 61 goals scored and only 13 conceded, and it was widely seen in Spain as ludicrous to remove him just as they were about to play their first game, and for doing something that coaches do all the time. But hot-headed Rubiales seized on the opportunity to become the protagonist and Lopetegui went home robbed of the chance of taking charge of a single game.
The players were with him to a man. Even those that would soon be facing him as Real Madrid coach wanted him to stay. Spain’s director of football Ivan Hierro also fought for him to continue but Rubiales was not for turning and Hierro ended up as caretaker coach as Spain crashed out in the first knockout round.
Hurt by the lost opportunity, he needed more than ever for the Madrid job to be a success but Real dumped him three months into the next season as the team struggled in their first campaign after Cristiano Ronaldo’s exit from the club.
He has always talked down a sense of revenge driving him on in subsequent jobs. ‘You get up in the morning and you don’t face the day thinking, “Two years ago…!” It’s your energy and your passion that drives you on,’ he told me in an interview before taking the Wolves job in 2022.
His redemption came at Sevilla where he first had to overcome an adverse reaction from some fans who had bought into the idea he had let Spain down by joining Real Madrid.
He won them over by winning a Europa League and turning a team with relatively modest resources into title outsiders in Spain, securing Champions League qualification for three seasons in a row. When he went to Wolves he secured their Premier League survival despite them being bottom when he joined with only 10 points after 15 games.
Lopetegui was dramatically sacked as Spain boss after negotiating with Real Madrid
The Spaniard’s time at Real Madrid didn’t go to plan as he lasted just 14 games in charge
Lopetegui bounced back to win the Europa League with Sevilla in the 2019-20 campaign
The foundation of his playing style has always been a well-drilled defence. But he also brought the best out of gifted playmaker Isco with the Spain team and the talented but sometimes temperamental striker Youssef En-Nesyri at Sevilla.
The Morocco striker is one of the club’s most saleable assets and a player West Ham have taken an interest in before. And Lopetegui first worked with Isco as Spain Under 21 coach bringing through a generation that also included David de Gea, Koke and Alvaro Morata.
There is a seriousness and a commitment to detail that has earned him their respect. It can make his press conferences conservative, even dour, but the message is always for the players.
‘If you have lost a game or won a game the time for rejoicing or mourning lasts for about as long as the post-match meal,’ he says.
And not looking too far forward is as important as not looking back. ‘Just because you are looking further ahead that doesn’t mean you take a bigger step,’ is another of his mantras.
As West Ham boss, Lopetegui will be aiming for Champions League qualification
He believes in the steady climb to the summit. He will always believe the summit was close with the Spanish national team, until he was unceremoniously pushed back down the mountain by Rubiales.
His career remains defined by that incident, and by the way he has recovered from it.
Sources close to the 57-year-old say he only had eyes for West Ham once their commitment to him became clear. Getting them into the Champions League will be the aim.
Hit those highs and he will be back in the very top bracket of coaches where he has always believed he belongs. And it will give him something positive to report on those trips back to Asteasu in Guipuzcoa, northern Spain to see Jose Antonio.
