Nils Koppen has offered West Ham United supporters an insight into the club's recruitment strategy – and, perhaps more importantly, revealed why January is unlikely to resemble another transfer frenzy.
The Hammers' director of player recruitment was the latest guest on the club's Iron Cast podcast, presented by former KUMB Podcast host Chris Scull, during which he discussed the extraordinary workload involved in rebuilding a squad which had just been relegated from the Premier League.
Koppen arrived at West Ham from Rangers in early July, with the summer window already well underway. And he admitted that it had been the busiest transfer window he had ever experienced.
Eight new signings ultimately arrived, while a significant number departed, meaning there was little opportunity for the new recruitment chief to ease himself into his role. However according to Koppen, that means January shouldn't be anywhere near as hectic.
"Normally, the first idea is you don't want to do too much in January," Koppen explained. "I think we have a very in-depth squad right now.
"I think it's quite balanced. We're assessing right now with the manager what are the positions where, if we want to make a step again, what positions we want to improve. So that process is underway."
While not exactly the language of a club preparing to go shopping simply for the sake of it, that doesn't mean West Ham will be inactive during thew winter window - rather, the recruitment department is already assessing what adjustments may be required.
"I think it will depend where we are and what we need at that moment," added Koppen. "You never know what will happen injury-wise.
"For the moment, we're just assessing the squad. We know potentially where we can do something, but we don't expect big incoming players.
"We have a big squad right now. Do we still need to loan some players out in January game time wise? So let's take the time first to review the last window.
"We're getting ready for the January window, but I certainly don't expect as much activity as we had this summer."
In the summer, West Ham had no choice but to undertake substantial surgery. The club needed to assemble a squad capable of competing in the Championship while also retaining enough quality to potentially step back into the Premier League at the first opportunity.
Meanwhile January, by contrast, is likely to be about refinement rather than reconstruction - with Koppen's comments suggesting the club are attempting to establish a much clearer recruitment philosophy, in stark contrast perhaps to recent years.
And while further signings are likely to be limited during the winter window, the door remains firmly open for additions if Nuno Espirito Santo and the recruitment department identify a genuine weakness.
And for a club that has spent much of the last few years lurching from one transfer-window strategy to another, that may be one of the most positive revelations from Koppen's interview, which you may view in full below.
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