Ali Pour accepts Glentoran will have to trim their squad over the summer, but insists the club will never sacrifice quality for financial gain.
The Glens invested heavily under former manager Mick McDermott but are still searching for their first Premiership title since 2009.
Owner Pour said the start of last season was "amazing", with Glentoran riding high at the top of the Premiership and barely conceding a single goal.
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Their campaign started to unravel with a string of poor results after October, however,with McDermott then leaving as manager in January.
His replacement, Rodney McAree, managed to secure a third-place finish and qualified the club for Europe.
Pour says lessons have to be learned from last season, especially when it comes to the club's recruitment.
“The first couple of months of last season were amazing, we were flying and it was great. Then it just went so badly wrong that it was crushing, really soul-crushing," he said.
“So I enjoy it when it’s good, not so much when it’s not good. I invested heavily in the first few years and the results weren’t what we hoped for, so maybe it wasn’t worth doing, or maybe it was, it’s hard to say.
“It’s all become trial and error, I guess. We have a big squad, maybe we reduce the squad slightly, but what’s important is that it can’t affect performances.
"The quality has to remain high, we’re not going to make any sacrifices quality-wise for financial gain, that’s not going to happen.
“I not really qualified to judge, I’m the same as everyone, I’m a fan, I need to see results so I don’t get involved in day-to-day running of things or micromanagement of how many players we have, that’s really for the manager and his team.”
Club director Paul Millar, who was also head of recruitment for McDermott, says his previous experiences in the Irish League suggest that bloated squad numbers never result in improved performances.
He said too many players can result in frustration and disharmony amongst the ranks.
Millar added: "I remember when I was at Glenavon with Gary (Hamilton) a few years back. We had the best squad I personally think Glenavon ever had, like for like, from the goalkeeper through to the front, with cover, and it was probably the worst season that we had there because we had too many players and they all felt they should be playing.
“It was difficult so yes, the squad will definitely get trimmed a bit, not just to trim it but to make way for people coming in.
“We’ve a really good crop of young players, and Warren has been talking to two or three other young players about possibly coming in within the next week or so.
“I think with the new manager coming in, he might have ideas on certain players that maybe other people didn’t.”
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