On the fourth of July, 2026, West Ham United announced the arrival of Nils Koppen as the club’s new director of recruitment. It was a much-needed addition to the Hammers’ threadbare scouting department, which had been further depleted by the departure of Koppen’s predecessor, Max Hahn, in June. Formerly on the books of Genk, PSV, Rangers, and Copenhagen, the Belgian Koppen is a departure from previous recruitment heads at the London Stadium; Roshane Thomas of The Athletic reported that “moving forward, West Ham intend to adopt a holistic approach with transfers.” In essence, the Irons plan to eschew the disconnected approach to past transfer dealings in favor of a more joined-up process. Koppen, then, seems to have been given a greater degree of influence than his forerunners; he will be the unmistakable guide for West Ham in the market this summer.
The circumstances surrounding the appointment will certainly have fans excited, but the man himself should as well. Koppen is a gem-unearther, an analytics-friendly, refreshingly proactive go-getter with a penchant for finding quality players in overlooked nooks and crannies around the globe. Just to name a few of his best bits of business, he brought contemporary stars Johan Bakayoko and Ismael Saibari to PSV, and recruited the enormously talented Hamza Igamane to Rangers; the eventual combined profit secured by Koppen’s clubs from just those three players is in excess of 70 million British pounds.
So how exactly does Nils do it? Well, based on his previous dealings, I have identified four cornerstones of Koppen’s recruitment process, which I have elucidated below:
- Using his past experiences: Koppen is brilliant at synthesizing what he has learned in previous roles into tangible action. For instance, much has been made (rightfully so) of the new Hammer’s role in bringing Ismael Saibari to PSV, but it was actually the second time that Koppen had secured the Moroccan’s services; Koppen played a part in Saibari’s move from the Mechelen youth team to Genk when the player was only 16. Similarly, at Rangers, Koppen wasn’t shy in his pursuit of players he had become familiar with during his time working in the Eredivisie: in the 2024 summer transfer window alone, three former Dutch top-flight players made the move to Glasgow.
- Buying the dip: Koppen has frequently taken cheap chances on stagnating youngsters who have shown previous flashes of brilliance. At PSV, he took a swing on a 22-year-old Sergino Dest after a quartet of frustrating years with Barcelona and AC Milan; the American fullback has since played nearly 60 league games back in the nation where he started his professional career. Although slightly older, Czech winger Václav Cerny was a similar success story at Rangers; Cerny, who had starred at Twente in 2022-23, found equally stellar form in Scotland (scoring 11 times in 28 league games) after a turgid spell at Wolfsburg in the interim.
- (Mostly) buying young: Koppen has directly overseen two seasons' worth of transfer windows: PSV’s campaign in 2023-24, and Rangers’ in 2024-25. Over the course of those tenures, the players that Nils recruited had an average age of around 23. There were, of course, exceptions, but those exceptions were generally fairly cheap and risk-free.
- Being bold with the unproven: During Koppen’s spells anchoring their scouting departments, both PSV and Rangers had title aspirations in their respective leagues. But did this prevent Nils from searching far and wide, scouring disparate corners, to locate squad pieces? No. The tendency was especially apparent at Rangers; in the summer of 2024, Koppen signed players from eight different top-flight leagues, including the Moroccan Botola Pro 1 (Hamza Igamane), the Danish Superliga (Mohamed Diomande), and the Brazilian Serie A (Jefte, who had actually spent the previous season strutting his stuff in the Cypriot First Division). It doesn’t matter where you’re from: if you’re good enough, you’re good enough.
So, with these central tenets in mind, here are five players who the Hammers could realistically secure the services of given the presence of their new head of recruitment:
Hamza Igamane, Lille:
Very punchy, but it would be an utterly quintessential Nils Koppen signing. Igamane has, as previously noted, already been recruited by the Belgian talent-spotter to Rangers in 2024, where he starred for a year before a transfer to Lille in France. He’s still quite young, at 23 years old. And he’s a bit of a buy-low candidate: Igamane tore his ACL this past January while playing for Morocco in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations, an injury from which he has still yet to return (recent reports have indicated Igamane will likely be back on the pitch by October).
Of course, this adds some risk to this potential deal for the Hammers… but goodness me, would it be a risk worth taking. Igamane was showing himself to be a monstrously well-rounded attacker in Ligue 1 before his injury, thrilling as a sort of high-powered super-sub. Although on low volume, he averaged more expected goals on target per 90 minutes (1.07) than any other division-wide player in his position last season, and was in the top 10% for expected assists per 90 minutes. He was a spellbinding, barreling dribbler, comfortable angling inwards off either flank or playing as a deep-lying center forward. Igamane was valuable off the ball, too, intimidating opposition defenders in the press. He was utterly brilliant.
Has his value dipped low enough that Lille is willing to let him go? Maybe, maybe not. But it’s worth giving it a go for a player of this caliber.
Junnosuke Suzuki, Copenhagen:
Although his stint there may have been a short one, Nils Koppen was absolutely beloved at Copenhagen in the Danish Superliga. As reported by the Athletic and Copenhagen’s official website, club CEO Jacob Lauesen was particularly impressed with the Belgian: “Nils has taken on a great deal of responsibility at a time when the club needed it,” he opined, “and we are incredibly grateful for that… He has delivered outstanding work. Nils has been in demand the whole time, so we knew we probably had him on borrowed time.”
This positive relationship is one that could be utilized to West Ham’s benefit. The Hammers have already been linked to Copenhagen’s center-back Gabriel Pereira in recent days, but it’s his defensive partner who I believe would be an even better acquisition. Japanese international Junnosuke Suzuki was signed by the Danish side from Shonan Bellmare in the summer of 2025, and he was utterly brilliant despite his club’s poor season (Copenhagen finished last season in 7th place). Ferociously well-rounded and equally comfortable at center-half and right-back, Suzuki makes up for a lack of height with a powerful leap that won him over two aerial duels per 90 minutes in 2025-26 (on great efficiency). He’s a superb passer at both short and long distances, and he carries the ball with confidence. Given Nuno Espirito Santo’s tendency to toggle between a back four and a back three, the skillful Suzuki’s versatility would prove incredibly valuable for the Irons as they commence their Championship journey.
Thomas Jørgensen, Viborg:
Koppen has long been a proponent of utmost worldliness in scouting; describing his philosophies while in Scotland, Nils remarked that “It’s important to look all over the globe, where we can compete financially to get the best talents to the club.” He’s not afraid to have a go at the obscure.
Along those lines is Viborg’s Thomas Jørgensen, who is certainly flying under the radar a bit… but that shouldn’t be the case for much longer. Jørgensen is quite simply an outstanding progressive presence in midfield. The 20-year-old Dane notched 12 goal involvements in his nation’s top flight in 2025-26. He’s a bit of a Lucas Paqueta-lite, possessing outrageous passing technique and deceptiveness on the dribble. He has outstanding spatial awareness, thriving in tight pockets around the edge of the penalty area. But he can also progress the ball from deep himself, and has a penchant for a lung-busting run. His ball-playing efficiency is low, but that’s simply a byproduct of his directness, his willingness to try things.
It’s a signing that would make sense for Koppen, too; Even before the Belgian’s time in the Danish Superliga, he had recruited from the Scandinavian country, buying Mohamed Diomande from Nordsjaelland while in Scotland in 2024. He would do well to repeat the trick here.
Robin Mirisola, Genk:
Koppen gained a reputation early on in his career for plucking gems from youth teams around Belgium. It was a skill that he utilized as he progressed through different leagues; just look at Johan Bakayoko and Ismael Saibari, brought to the Netherlands from Genk, Nils’s former employers.
So who’s next in line? There are a few options, but one of my personal favorites also currently plies his trade at Genk. Robin Mirisola is an intriguing center-forward prospect; on the surface, his counting numbers don’t look that impressive, with the 19-year-old notching just three goals and two assists in 20 Belgian Pro League games in 2025-26. But the underlying shooting statistics are really favorable — he was in the top 25% of all division-wide strikers for expected goals per 90 minutes. For his position, Mirasola is also a ball-carrier of astonishing quality and possesses a menacing aerial threat. Lanky, supremely confident for his age, and full of flicks and tricks, he is the type of player who would get bums out of their seats at the London Stadium.
Mirisola would, of course, be one for the future, but signs point to him being able to contribute substantially in the present, as well. It would be a good idea to get ahead of the big boys on this one.
Aster Vranckx, Wolfsburg:
A few factors would justify this transfer. It would certainly be a buying of the dip; the former Belgian wonderkid Vranckx, now 23 years of age, is coming off two fairly disappointing seasons with Wolfsburg and (on loan at) Sassuolo. Koppen has bought low from both of those clubs before — Vaclav Cerny from the former, Nedim Bajrami from the latter — during his time at Rangers. And Vranckx is… well… he’s a Jorge Mendes client. Of course, fans of the Hammers will be hoping that the club is moving away from their era of agent-powered dealings. But if Nuno and Mendes need appeasing, this is the guy to do it.
Because Vranckx would be quite an interesting buy. Although pretty mediocre over the course of the last two seasons, there is still undeniably some talent there. Take a look at his numbers in 2023-24: he excelled for Wolfsburg as a deep-lying ball-winner, notching over 6 defensive contributions per 90 minutes on good efficiency. He was also an absolutely excellent dribbler of the ball, barrel-chested, domineering. And he was a solid passer, too. Earlier on in his career, Vranckx was even utilized as a box-attacker, causing chaos with late, angled runs.
If he is indeed available on a cut-price deal, Vranckx would be a worthwhile gamble for the Irons — a brilliant, multifaceted tool at his best.
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