Portsmouth sporting director Richard Hughes has revealed that the club will be looking to move away from signing players on temporary deals in the future.
Pompey managed to bolster their squad in the previous transfer window by signing five players on loan deals.
Josh Koroma, Owen Dale, Joe Pigott, Dane Scarlett and Josh Griffiths all joined Portsmouth on a temporary basis.
All of these aforementioned players have gone on to feature in League One this season.
Whereas Pigott and Dale are not expected to be recalled by their parent-clubs in January, it remains to be seen whether Koroma, Scarlett and Griffiths will remain at Fratton Park.
With Portsmouth aiming to sustain a push for a top-six finish in League One, it will be interesting to see whether they decide to bolster their squad by securing the services of some fresh faces next month.
Ahead of the upcoming window, Hughes has outlined the approach that Pompey will take regarding transfers in the future.
Speaking to The News, Hughes said: "I understand that 100 per cent (fears about January recalls).
"That's why there is the wider issues of assessing the suitability of loans as well.
"There's varying types of loans.
"Sometimes a loan player can be something you'd not ordinarily get, like in the case of a Josh Griffiths or a Dane Scarlett.
"Then there's the other players who provide better value than you'd be able to get in the market.
"That's something we've spoken about internally and how, potentially, we find a way of navigating away from loan deals.
"Then there's making sure we're best protected against losing players mid-season, and making sure we're as strong as we can be for the full 10 months of the campaign.
"It's tough, but we have five loans at the minute.
"You always want your own player and Danny [Cowley] wouldn't shy away from that."
The Verdict
This is an understandable approach to take regarding future transfers as fortunes can often be altered by a parent-club's decision to recall an individual who is thriving in a loan spell.
Pompey will be hoping that the five aforementioned players will stay at the club in January as this will allow them to focus on pursuing moves for other individuals.
Providing that they are able to nail their recruitment, Portsmouth will boost their chances of achieving a great deal of success during the remainder of the campaign.
By phasing out loan deals, Pompey will eventually put themselves in a healthy position where they could secure transfer fees for all of the members of their squad.