West Ham flop's brutal admission shows Koppen is major upgrade on Steidten

West Ham flop Luis Guilherme has made a brutally honest admission about his disastrous spell at the London Stadium which shows exactly why Nils Koppen looks like a major upgrade on Tim Steidten.

The Brazilian winger, who joined Sporting after failing to establish himself at West Ham, has admitted he knew almost immediately his time in England would not last.

That is quite something when you consider the Hammers paid around £20m to sign Luis Guilherme from Palmeiras in 2024.

And it is another reminder of the folly of West Ham allowing Tim Steidten to spend tens of millions on players who were simply not ready to deliver what the club needed.

And it will make West Ham fans extremely grateful for Nils Koppen.

Guilherme was the first signing of Steidten’s first summer in full control of West Ham’s transfer and, in paying over £20m for an untested 18-year-old, undoubtedly his biggest gamble.

The German had been handed considerable funds to rebuild the West Ham squad, but his recruitment was littered with expensive mistakes.

Guilherme arrived being billed as an exciting young prospect from Brazilian giants Palmeiras, but he had not yet even established himself at senior level there and faced an even bigger jump trying to adapt to European football.

West Ham supporters quickly questioned whether he was anywhere near the standard required for the Premier League.

Now the player himself has admitted how difficult he found the transition.

Speaking to Portuguese newspaper O Jogo, Guilherme said: “At first it was the intensity, completely different from Brazil.

“The first three months were very difficult for me because of everything. Not only football, but the country, the language and the culture.

“Honestly, I thought I wouldn’t stay there long. I thought I would stay six months at most.”

He added that the experience had ultimately made him mentally stronger.

In the end, Guilherme lasted longer than six months but it counted for little as he failed to establish himself in the squad let alone the team, piling pressure on Steidten’s job.

Guilherme made 18 appearances, failed to score or register an assist and struggled to get anywhere near regular first-team football before leaving for Sporting in January 2026.

The Portuguese club gave him opportunities to play, although he has yet to establish himself as a major star there either.

His honesty is refreshing, but it raises an obvious question.

Why were West Ham spending so much money on a teenager who was nowhere near ready to make an impact, without a convincing plan to get him there?

Guilherme was arguably Steidten’s biggest flop, but he was far from the only one.

The German’s spell at West Ham was littered with expensive recruitment mistakes, from Niclas Fullkrug to Jean-Clair Todibo.

The club spent significant sums on players who offered little resale value and ultimately failed to deliver the quality or consistency needed.

Relegation was the devastating consequence.

West Ham somehow managed to secure a substantial fee when selling Guilherme to Sporting, but that does not change the fact his time in east London was a failure.

Steidten’s recruitment often felt like a kid in a candy store, indulging in exciting names and big-money punts without enough consideration for the overall squad, the manager’s needs or whether players were ready to contribute.

The result left West Ham fans feeling sick.

Now the Hammers have Koppen heading up recruitment, and his approach appears much more considered.

The Belgian has explained that he favours a hybrid model, using data to identify potential targets before combining that analysis with scouting, interviews and detailed personality assessments.

He also consults former coaches, teammates and backroom staff rather than relying on reputation alone.

That is precisely the sort of diligence West Ham desperately needed.

Koppen’s first transfer window was hardly straightforward, with nine arrivals and 13 departures as the club attempted to rebuild after relegation.

Yet the intention is clear: combine experienced players who can help secure promotion with younger talents who can develop into Premier League footballers.

Arne Engels is an example of the latter, while signings such as Joel Veltman bring experience and reliability.

Koppen will inevitably make mistakes of his own. No recruitment chief gets every signing right.

But his measured approach already looks a significant improvement on Steidten’s expensive scattergun strategy.

Guilherme’s admission does not mean the Brazilian could never have succeeded in England.

It does, however, underline the importance of getting recruitment right in the first place.

West Ham need players who can deliver now, youngsters with a realistic development pathway and a recruitment department which understands the difference.

For a club trying to rebuild after relegation, Koppen looks like just the man to make West Ham better.