One success story was Mohammed Kudus. The Ghana forward, signed from Ajax for £38m, scored 19 goals in 80 games before departing for Tottenham Hotspur, who forked out £55m last summer.
Others have fared less well; Niclas Fullkrug (£27m) found the net just three times in 29 appearances before being loaned out to AC Milan, while the jury is still out on Mateus Fernandes, who cost £38m from Southampton last summer.
Striker Evan Ferguson’s short loan spell from Brighton last season yielded precisely zero goals.
Defensive worries abound for Nuno, who is without a clean sheet in his 16 games in charge. Spending £40m on Max Kilman on a seven-year deal under Lopetegui raised eyebrows at the time, and his numbers are not kind.
West Ham have conceded 106 goals in the 60 games the ex-Wolves man has played. Alongside him, it has been a tricky season for £34m Frenchman Jean-Clair Todibo.
The past two Januarys have been quiet for the Irons, with players only arriving on loan .
There seems to have been a gear change this month, with two permanent deals already completed for strikers Pablo Felipe from Gil Vicente for £21.8m and Taty Castellanos from Lazio for a reported £26m.
Hammers fans will be hoping the pair can fire them up the table.