David Moyes says Brendan Rodgers’s sacking by Leicester is a reminder of the perils of the Premier League’s relegation battle and says he is under no illusions about the need to turn West Ham’s season around or risk losing his job.
The Hammers climbed to 14th with Sunday’s 1-0 victory over Southampton at the London Stadium but they remain just a point clear of the drop zone.
Midway through the game, news broke of Rodgers’ axe, Leicester’s hierarchy acting after a run of five defeats in six games that has seen the Foxes slip to 19th.
The decision leaves Moyes and Nottingham Forest’s Steve Cooper as the only managers in the bottom half of the division to have been in their posts from the start of the season.
“I am in a results business and I have to get results,” Moyes said. “I have no protection that possibly stops me from losing my job.
"I am really disappointed for Brendan. Super manager. Really good coach. He won’t be out of a job long. Look at his record, the teams he has had, the way he has worked and how they play. In the life of a football manager, there can always be bad times.
“You are very fortunate if you are one of those managers who only has good times and are winning all the time. There has to be parts of your career when you are not doing so well.”
Moyes has reportedly been on the brink of the sack on multiple occasions this season, only for his side to pull crucial victories out of the fire in key home fixtures against relegation rivals.
Publicly, the West Ham board have been steadfast in their backing of a manager who delivered successive top-seven finishes and is looking to reach back-to-back semi-finals in Europe.
Until this season, Rodgers has regularly had Leicester competing in the top half of the League and won the FA Cup less than two years ago, but any longstanding credit has not been enough to spare his job.
“I am really fortunate the owners I have got and got to know in the last two-and-a-half years have been really good,” Moyes added. “But I also think, if I am protecting myself, we have had two or three really good years which have helped.
“So has Brendan. He has been a really super coach and a manager for Leicester. It has probably been pretty tough on him. But we are in a whirlpool. It is happening more now. There is a lot of money at stake to be a Premier League club and it is a big thing for clubs to go down."
