Michael Edwards‘ return to Liverpool is now official, with the 44-year-old taking up a wider role within the club and appointing a new sporting director.
The move comes as the first major play in Fenway Sports Group’s restructure of Liverpool, ahead of the departure of Jurgen Klopp at the end of the season.
With Klopp resigning, he will be followed by many of his staff, while sporting director Jorg Schmadtke vacated his short-term position in February.
FSG instigated talks with Edwards immediately after the news of Klopp’s exit, and after being initially turned down, they agreed terms on a wide-ranging role overseeing football operations.
The club’s owners have now confirmed the news, which comes less than two years after Edwards left the club in 2022, at which point he was sporting director.
His role will be CEO of Football within FSG, which includes “a broad range of responsibilities including leading efforts to identify and recruit new leadership for Liverpool FC’s football operation.”
• READ: How Michael Edwards’ return can kick off Liverpool’s plan to ‘recreate’ Jurgen Klopp
His first appointment in this new role will come with a successor to the sporting director job, with Richard Hughes set to arrive from Bournemouth at the end of the campaign.
Hughes has held his position as technical director at Bournemouth for the most part of a decade, but announced his imminent departure earlier in March.
Edwards and Hughes will now be tasked with negotiating with Liverpool’s next manager, with Xabi Alonso the front-runner for a role that has not been vacant for almost nine years.
Alonso is leading Bayer Leverkusen through an as-yet-unbeaten season, sitting 10 points clear of Bayern Munich at the top of the Bundesliga.
Sporting CP manager Ruben Amorim is an alternative, while Julian Nagelsmann, who is currently in charge of the Germany national team, has also been mentioned.
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