Paco Jémez remains optimistic about Nuno Espírito Santo helping West Ham United return to the Premier League, a year after dropping to the Championship.
The London club appointed Nuno as their manager in September 2025, after parting ways with Graham Potter.
West Ham registered only two league wins under Nuno until Jémez joined his backroom staff on January 17th. There was an improvement in the Hammers’ results, but it wasn’t enough to avoid relegation.
The English club finished 18th in the table, two points behind 17th placed Tottenham Hotspur. Following their relegation, they retained the Portuguese coach, who is still in charge.
However, Jémez left the Hammers and joined Moroccan side Raja Casablanca on August 31st.
Spaniard on close ties with West Ham boss
Barring a spell at West Ham United, Paco Jémez has always been the head coach during his management career.
The 56-year-old knows Nuno Espírito Santo well from their playing careers, and the pair played alongside each other at Deportivo La Coruña.
In January, he explained the former Wolves and Nottingham Forest manager’s cry for help convinced him to be his assistant at West Ham.
Fast forward to October and the print edition of O Jogo has an interview with Jémez. He won’t rule out managing in Portugal in the future and shared his views on the Spanish players and coaches.
Row with Nuno at West Ham
Towards the end, the newspaper points out his friendship with the West Ham United boss, which started at Deportivo La Coruña.
“I’ve always had many teammates or players coached by me who were Portuguese. This experience with Nuno was fantastic; he asked me to help the club during a difficult time,” he said.
“We made a tremendous recovery, but it wasn’t enough to save us. I’m convinced he’ll get the promotion, to bring West Ham back to the Premier League. He’s a hard worker, very dedicated to what he does.”
Paco Jémez and Nuno Espírito Santo had a row on the sidelines in the Hammers’ 3-1 win over Sunderland in January.
After the clash, the Raja Casablanca boss said Nuno didn’t bring him to West Ham to ‘stay silent’.
When O Jogo points it out, Jémez explained: “Our relationship is great, and in that game, we only had one disagreement about who should come on. I gave my opinion, which isn’t always in agreement with his. He’s the coach, I had to respect him. I’m grateful because I got to know the Premier League from the inside. I loved the club.”
