Here is your Liverpool morning digest for Saturday, November 26.
Liverpool have three clear options to replace Julian Ward
A little over six years on from Liverpool's appointment of the first-ever sporting director, Jurgen Klopp is facing up to the prospect of searching for a third in less than 12 months.
Michael Edwards's fortunes as the club's first in the saddle has become the stuff of modern legend at Anfield given his wildly successful stint where he recruited many of the players who turned Klopp's squad from top-four hopefuls into one who have won every top-level trophy available to them since June 2019.
The low-key Edwards operated behind the scenes to aplomb during his time in the role, developing a near mythical reputation in the process due to how the performances of the players he brought to the club contrasted with his penchant for shunning the spotlight at all times.
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“This decision is hugely positive for us and it will make us better and stronger in managing the process of building and retaining playing talent at all age groups," Klopp said upon Edwards's official promotion in November 2016.
"Development is so important and it makes sense to have a position, within the football structure specifically, that focuses on where we can improve. It’s no secret I like the concept of a sporting director and having worked under this model previously I have found it to be nothing but positive and forward-thinking.
“Michael is absolutely the right person for this. He has the knowledge, expertise and personality to flourish in the role and I was delighted when he told me he would be accepting the position. Importantly, he also has a fantastic team of people around him, who have all played a significant role in putting together the talent we currently have in the first team, development squad and at even younger age levels.”
READ THE FULL STORY HERE.
FSG may be forced to make major change
For a club that has looked to have stability at its core over the past 12 years of ownership, the current landscape at Liverpool appears far less steady than it did.
A little over a fortnight on from Fenway Sports Group revealing that they were open to offers of both investment and a full-scale takeover. there has been continued change, with FSG's point man at Anfield, Mike Gordon, stepping back from his day-to-day involvement. He has handed over his responsibilities to Reds CEO Billy Hogan while he focuses on leading the search for investment or bids for a full sale.
On Thursday, further unexpected change arrived. It was announced that sporting director Julian Ward would be ending his 10 years with the club at the end of this season, just six months on from assuming the role after the departure of Michael Edwards. Also leaving the club is Dr Ian Graham. Liverpool's director of research will also depart at the end of the season having been a key piece of FSG's puzzle from early in their reign in getting their data analytics strategy off the ground.
The Reds were said to be 'surprised and disappointed' at Ward's decision. His departure arrives at a time of growing uncertainty at Anfield with significant investment required in an ageing first-team squad that has shown deficiencies this season.
With Champions League football next season by no means cut and dried, there is a need to add real quality if Liverpool are to avoid falling too far behind the likes of Manchester City, and at a time when Manchester United are resurgent and Newcastle United are both performing on the pitch and able to call on mammoth financial backing off it.
The timing is, of course, interesting. Just two weeks on from FSG signalling that they were unsure of their own long-term future at Anfield, the decision of Ward to express his desire to leave at the end of the season is less than ideal for the Reds and their owners, who must now traverse the need to both look at options for their exit and also decide upon measures for the longer-term strategy at the club.
Strategy is understood to remain core to pursuit of success inside Liverpool with manager Jurgen Klopp likely to play a significant role in what happens next. But with the next two transfer windows requiring FSG to break from their tried-and-tested model and shell out some serious cash to address their squad issues, and afford the Reds the best chance of continuing to challenge for honours across the board, something that their extraordinary revenue growth over the past five years has been predicated upon.
READ THE FULL STORY HERE.
READ NEXT:
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