Graham Alexander says Ross Tierney is an example of Motherwell's new transfer policy, where they target players who can operate in multiple roles... and the youngster could find himself up front.
Tierney, 20, signed a three-year deal from Irish side Bohemians this month and it was assumed that he was joining as a midfielder.
However, Alexander revealed this morning that he had tried to sign Tierney a couple of times, partly because he fits the bill on more versatile players.
Alexander explained: "We tried to sign him in the summer and then eventually we got it done, because we feel he's capable of playing in various positions, all in an attacking threat, but we see that with how we like to look at players.
"If they're designed to play in one particular position only we tend to steer clear.
"We want to play and sign players that are adaptable, who can play in at least two other roles that we see in our team.
"It allows us to keep a tighter squad; we don't need to have a massive group of players to cover all the positions, I think we can use the same players to play in different positions.
"We've seen that this season with several players, and I think it has been underpinning how well we've done this season, because we have a really good, strong group of players - not overly big, but certainly together and unified in what we need to do on the pitch."
Tierney and midfielder Liam Shaw, who has signed on loan from Celtic for the rest of this season, will both go into the squad for tomorrow night's Premiership clash against Ross County in Dingwall.
They, and striker Jordan Roberts, who joined the club permanently from Hearts, might be all that Alexander brings in this month, but he says it's better than signing several players, who then don't feature in the team.
He said: "Ross has been playing all season, so he has had a little bit more of a break over Christmas, because we wanted to let him recover from his previous season, but he's match-ready.
"Liam Shaw, we know he's match-ready, he has been in Celtic's squad a lot of times. We've played 11 v 11s bounce games in the break and he has played in those, so he's fit enough to come into the selection picture straight away.
"We wanted players who were ready to go. I remember last season when we were at this stage, brought in a lot of players who hadn't played a lot of football and it was difficult for us, and for those individuals.
"We feel that the couple of additions we've got are ready to go in, so that strengthens our hand.
"I'm quite happy with what we've got. If I look at the board, I think we have competition in all the positions, which is really important for us."
Alexander added: "We're always looking, we haven 't stopped looking. I know the window goes from there to there, but in between there's a lot of work, and lot of analysis on players.
"We always understand that we can't be overly reliant on any individual, so we always have counter-targets for any upcoming issues, players leaving, or players coming.
"For us, we feel we have to constantly try to improve, so even if we're not looking at a position, if someone comes along that we feel can improve us as a club and as a team then we'll look to do something. That will continue to be the case.
"We feel that the additions we've made are good, and if there's anyone out there that we feel can improve us again, then we'll try to do something."
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