West Ham manager Julen Lopetegui has been handed a one-game suspension, meaning that he will miss his side’s upcoming Premier League game against Arsenal on Saturday, 30 November 2024.
Lopetegui received his third yellow card of the season during the Hammers’ Premier League game away to Newcastle United on Monday night – which is enough to trigger an automatic one-game suspension for managers, although players do not meet this threshold until they accumulate five bookings.
News of Lopetegui’s suspension will come as a huge boost to Arsenal, who visit the London Stadium on Saturday, as the Gunners look to win consecutive Premier League games for the first time since the beginning of October in a bid to get their title challenge back on track.
Some Arsenal fans, given Lopetegui’s poor start to life as the Hammers’ manager, have poked fun at his suspension, with one saying on X (formerly Twitter): “[Julen] Lopetegui serving a touchline ban against Arsenal is advantage West Ham.”
