By Lewis Thompson
Michael Edwards appointment a mark of ‘faith and intent’ says Liverpool.com senior writer James Martin.
Last week it was announced that Michael Edwards would be returning to Liverpool as Fenway Sports Group’s CEO of Football. It was said the 44-year-old was headhunted by FSG for a while, due to his previous success as sporting director with the club.
As life after Jurgen Klopp begins to unfold, the extent of Edwards’ responsibilities seems to be quite unknown among Reds fans while he adjusts to his new role at the club.
Where do Liverpool need to strengthen in the summer transfer window? w/Neil Jones
Dan Clubbe sat down with Liverpool.com senior writer James Martin to discuss the returning Edwards.
Martin said: “Edwards has developed a reputation that really made him appreciated by those in the industry as the best in class.
“The sheer persistence of the move is something else in terms of how they approached Edwards with knock-back and basically created this position for him.
“Some would credit him as the next most important figure over the last decade or so of success, so to get him back in to oversee the post-Klopp era you can see why they were so keen.
“It even sounds as if FSG are moving towards getting an extra club essentially as part of the package to get him back, which is quite the statement of faith and intent.”
Liverpool first hired Edwards as head of analytics in November 2011, before appointing him to a newly created role as head of football operations.
During his time at the club, Edwards brought in the likes of Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Alisson, while overseeing the sale of Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona for over £100 million in 2018.
Martin added: “Edwards was very involved in his first stint, it wasn’t just transfers, which tells you how broad this new role must be.
“I don’t think the reason FSG want him back is the stability, but it’s an added bonus when you lose a figure like Klopp – who’s obviously been the figurehead for so long.
“In Edwards, you’re getting an expert in his field and someone who’s got a proven track record, not only at building success but building success at Liverpool, and so whoever the next manager may be, they’re coming into a structure which we know works.”
LET’S TALK ABOUT CODY GAKPO…
Hiring a new first-team manager will be at the top of Edwards’ list in his new role at Liverpool, on top of numerous other tasks, such as financing transfer plans and sorting out new contracts.
Come the end of the season, Van Dijk and Salah will be 33 and 32 respectively, while Trent Alexander-Arnold’s contract is due to expire the following summer.
“This is the hard launch of Liverpool 2.0 and it makes sense to have Edwards in as the figurehead to lead that.
“We don’t know how the day-to-day split will work in terms of who is dealing with contracts among other things, but obviously Edwards is going to be leading the thinking of it.
“There have been one or two worries expressed in terms of the contracts, as people jump to put two and two together to say, ‘We know Edwards has had a couple of issues in the past with longer contracts and older players, should we be worried?
“Not necessarily for me, who knows what he’ll do but he’s going to look at the situation and ask himself, ‘Is it in the best interests of the football club to lose these players?’, who at the moment are some of the best in the world in their position.
“There has to be a strong body of evidence for him to say yeah we should get rid of them – he’s not scared of the bold calls but he also does not make stupid calls.”
With Richard Hughes today announced as the new sporting director after leaving his role at AFC Bournemouth, it seems like the end of an era is upon us with the restructuring at the top more than underway.
“The timing of it seems exactly right, it all adds up and it’s quite a smart move,” Martin added.
“It’s a case of giving the next manager all of the tools possible to be a success.”
TO GET MORE REDMEN CONTENT IN YOUR LIFE SIGN UP AS A CAPTAIN OR A LEGEND ON REDMENPLUS.COM
