West Ham are said to be closing in on appointing Nils Koppen to lead on recruitment but must surely heed Kris Boyd’s brutal verdict on the Belgian’s spell at Rangers.
After missing out on highly-regarded recruitment specialist Steve Nickson following his departure from Newcastle, West Ham are now closing in on appointing Nils Koppen.
The former PSV man worked with West Ham’s interim CEO Karim Virani at Rangers and is now set to come in to oversee transfers.
Kris Boyd savaged incoming West Ham director Koppen
Koppen lasted just 18 months at Rangers before joining Copenhagen, where he has been for less than a year.
Hammers News looked at what incoming West Ham director Koppen has said about transfer strategy.
Nils Koppen helped build PSV’s title-winning squad! What do you want from him at West Ham?
Koppen said he likes to target players from lesser known leagues all over the globe and tries to ensure they bring in the right characters.
He has been credited for his role in PSV’s previous success – but some dispute his influence, pointing to the fact Arne Slot laid the foundations at his former club.
West Ham’s move has raised eyebrows among fans, questioning Koppen’s pedigree and the fact he has not stuck around long in job roles that are all about longevity and building projects.
And it is with good reason that Hammers supporters are wary of the appointment, it seems.
Because one man who knows more about Rangers than most, savaged the job the Belgian did at the Scottish giants.
So perhaps West Ham would be minded to heed Kris Boyd’s brutal verdict on Koppen’s Rangers spell.
Boyd labelled Koppen’s recruitment ‘diabolical’
Copenhagen finished seventh in the Danish Superliga, being involved in the relegation group when the league split in two.
And he failed to impress during his 18-month tenure at Ibrox too if Boyd’s famous rant about Koppen on Sky Sports is anything to go by.
Boyd questioned Koppen’s recruitment and suggested he needed to pay the price for Rangers’ failings at the time.
“The recruitment from the football club for a number of years now is absolutely miles off it,” Boyd said nearly a year into Koppen’s 18-month tenure.
“There is money being spent… there is no way this (recruitment) can continue at Rangers and somebody needs to get a grip of it…
“Nils Koppen, I’ll mention his name again because he can’t be totally immune to criticism, this is on him as well, the recruitment has been diabolical – once again.”
Perhaps Daniel Kretinsky and the board need to think again because West Ham simply cannot afford to get this appointment, the summer transfer window or next season wrong.
There is far too much at stake to take punts.
It looks like West Ham might be hiring Koppen based on the fact he previously worked with Virani rather than the fact he is the best candidate for the job and what the Hammers need.
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