Julen Lopetegui has spoken for the first time since his farewell to West Ham and he’s perplexed he had to join the club in the first place.

Appointing Julen Lopetegui now looks to be one of the biggest mistakes West Ham have made since Avram Grant.

The Spaniard lasted just 192 days as Hammers boss.

Lopetegui was sacked last month to become the shortest-serving permanent West Ham manager in the club’s 130-year history.

Many felt the Hammers waited two months too long before pulling the trigger.

Warning signs were there from the start that the 58-year-old was the wrong choice.

Most fans were against the appointment but majority owner David Sullivan pressed ahead with hiring the ex Wolves boss.

What ensued was a tempestuous seven months of bust-ups, bizarre tactics and team selections and awful performances and results.

Lopetegui was finally sacked after a drawn-out saga following hammerings to Liverpool and Man City.

Graham Potter has come in as his replacement.

Lopetegui baffled he had to join West Ham in first place

But after some initial enthusiasm, results continue to alarm with just one win in his first six games.

Many feel Lopetegui, technical director Tim Steidten – and ultimately the owners – have set West Ham back years.

Especially after it emerged the club is now facing financial restrictions following the summer’s £155m splurge.

It is not just West Ham who are regretting the appointment, though.

Because Lopetegui himself has admitted he’s baffled he had to join West Ham in the first place.

The former Real Madrid and Spain manager has been speaking for the first time since posting a farewell message to the Irons on social media.

And he is still miffed that he was even in the position to take up West Ham’s offer after having his heart set on becoming AC Milan manager.

Lopetegui says he was ‘very happy’ that he was going to join Milan.

He appears to make a dig at the divided factions inside West Ham by saying Milan operates as one collective together.

And he says Milan suddenly withdrew their contract offer, which pushed him into West Ham’s arms.

Lopetegui had heart set on Milan not West Ham

“Milan shows up and I’m very happy,” Lopetegui told La Gazetta Dello Sport.

“It’s an historic and attractive team, and I’ve always liked the Italian league – I’ve always followed it, and was attracted by the way they understand football as a collective game.

“Arrigo (Sacchi) strongly encouraged my footballing curiosity. He inspired me. I studied him and I was lucky enough to get to know him.

“The negotiation progressed well, then stopped abruptly. It’s not up to me to reveal or comment on the reasons why they stopped.”

Lopetegui also stated he wants his next job to be in Serie A, where he believes he can mix it with the best.

“The discussion with Serie A is not closed off,” the former West Ham boss added.

“Sooner or later I would like to come and honestly, I think I would be able to measure myself in what I consider to be a stimulating league from a tactical point of view.”

Lopetegui knows full well why Milan pulled the plug

Whether a club would be brave enough to give Lopetegui a chance after the mess he left at West Ham is unclear.

Although his reluctance to reveal why Milan pulled the plug is clearly through embarrassment.

Because as Hammers News reported at the time, Milan’s hardcore ultra fans – the Curva Sud – launched what was described as a ‘massive social media protest’ with the hashtag #Nopetegui.

The strength of feeling against appointing Lopetegui meant it was among the highest trending topics on social media in Italy in that 48-hour period.

The rest, as they say, is history.

After everything that went on with the Spaniard, Lopetegui’s farewell message to West Ham was classy.

And he dealt with the death of his father admirably while going through a tough time with the Hammers.

But as a manager he proved a disaster Milan did well to avoid.