FSG have signed their key man for CRUCIAL rebuild

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The perfect man for the job is overseeing Liverpool's rebuild Michael Edwards first arrived on Merseyside in 2011 as the club's head of analytics and after five years in the department, he was the club's first choice to become the sporting director in 2016 - a move that changed the trajectory of club. Jurgen Klopp's tenure as manager was marked as an incredibly successful one, winning a Premier League title, a Champions League, two League Cups, an FA Cup, a Super Cup, a Club World Cup and a Community Shield, and while his work with the players was remarkable, he needed help in the transfer market - finding the right players for the right price. And that's where Michael Edwards comes in. All of the recent greats were brought to the club by Edwards. Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson, Alisson Becker, Fabinho, Diogo Jota and Ibrahima Konate, to name a few. These were all deals that involved extensive scouting and assessment through analytics, and each of them can be regarded as a success. To put it bluntly, it's remarkable what the club achieved between 2016 and 2022 - eight pieces of silverware in addition to two runner-up finishes in the Champions League and two 90-point plus runner-up finishes in the Premier League.

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It was when Edwards left that the club went through a rough patch. A season was spent in the Europa League, the £85m Darwin Nunez transfer was signed off on, and important contracts were left unresolved - including the situation regarding Mohamed Salah, Van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold. EXCLUSIVE: Liverpool line up club record bid for Julian Alvarez Jorge Schmadtke might well be praised with the recruitment of Alexis Mac Alister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Ryan Gravenberch and Wataru Endo, but when it was announced that Edwards would be coming back last season, the decision was met by glee and excitement by fans. FSG got their man and fans began to dream of their team returning to the top. When you're dealing with weight of deciding who replaces Jurgen Klopp, the club's fourth most successful manager of all time, who better to have overseeing the transition than Michael Edwards?

© IMAGO - Arne Slot Liverpool 2024-25

Assessing how the club proceeds over the next few years Arne Slot was the clear choice for Liverpool to make as head coach - his style of football was intertwined with the philosophy that Klopp can been inspired by and the values he embraced at Feyenoord were similar to those Liverpool carry. But the summer was littered with change, alongside Edwards' arrival, with Richard Hughes joining the executive chain of command as sporting director, alongside a number of other appointments. So while on the face of it, Liverpool were largely absent in the transfer window, the club was busy organising its internal affairs and Slot was convinced that the squad can sufficient quality to challenge for trophies. Nearly eight months down the line, it is clear that the Dutchman was right as the Reds sit just 16 points away from clinching the Premier League, which would be the club's 20th first-division title. However, the issues within the squad remain. Salah, Van Dijk and Trent's contracts are all set to expire and although we don't know what will happen, the club will have an understanding of how they will proceed, with or without the three talismen. In addition, positions on the pitch such as left-back, centre-back, defensive midfield, striker and winger are in needs of recruitment. Although contract extensions may limit the budget the club has to work with - much to the frustration of fans - the new administration will have plans in place for next season. After all, as concerning as the current situation is, it is not because of Michael Edwards or Richard Hughes that we are in this mess, is it?

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