Liverpool's American owner, Fenway Sports Group (FSG), has confirmed the appointment of Michael Edwards as the organization's CEO of football, confirming the appointment of a new leader to the Premier League club's football operations. This was the first challenge.
Edwards was previously Liverpool's sporting director and is said to have overhauled the club's recruitment strategy in 2015, appointing Jurgen Klopp as manager.
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He left the club in 2022 but has now returned as part of FSG's wider structure and will be tasked with rebuilding the football operations team following Klopp's departure from Liverpool at the end of the season.
FSG struggled to find a replacement for Edwards after his departure, with Julian Ward and Jörg Schmattke both serving as sporting director for less than 12 months.
However, Edwards will now return to Liverpool to oversee a new era, and has hinted that FSG could move to buy another football club.
“It was extremely important to me that if I was to come back, I did so with renewed vigor and energy,” Edwards said in a statement.
“In practice, this means there are new challenges and opportunities. So one of the biggest factors in my decision was to acquire and oversee additional clubs and grow this area of the organization. This is a commitment.”
“We believe we need to invest in and expand our current football portfolio to remain competitive.”
Sources have told ESPN that Bournemouth technical director Richard Hughes has been named to fill the vacant sporting director position at Liverpool at the end of the season.
Sources say Edwards was offered opportunities by Chelsea and Manchester United after leaving Liverpool, but rejected those offers in order to wait for the right opportunity.
Information from ESPN's Mark Ogden contributed to the bottom of this report
