Michael Edwards and Julian Ward, two former sporting directors at Liverpool, resigned in quick succession. After a flurry of appointments, the club brought in the experienced Jörg Schmatke from Germany, who, armed with his thick Bundesliga connections, helped revamp the midfield during last summer’s transfer window.
Originally seen as a short-term deal, with the announcement of the departure of team leader Jurgen Klopp, Wolfsburg’s former sports director announced that his work at Anfield will end when the transfer market closes this winter.
Liverpool will now have to find a new sports director, as they did last year, but they already have their sights set on a successor. Sky Sport’s Gianluca Di Marzio reported that Richard Hughes, currently technical director at Bournemouth, is a candidate.
“Richard Hughes is a candidate at Liverpool to replace Jörg Schmadtke as Sporting Director at the starting of next season. He is currently working as Technical Director at Bournemouth.”
Richard #Hughes is a candidate at @LFC to replace Jörg #Schmadtke as Sporting Director at the starting of next season. He is currently working as Technical Director at @afcbournemouth. @SkySport #Liverpool #LFC
— Gianluca Di Marzio (@DiMarzio) January 26, 2024
He has been in charge of the position since 2014, and was instrumental in the acquisition of Dutch defender Nathan Ake, England forward Callum Wilson, and England defender Tyrone Mings, as well as 25-year-old defender Lloyd Kelly, who has also attracted interest from Liverpool.
He has succeeded in bringing excellent players into the team on a limited budget, and now that he may be leaving Bournemouth at the end of the season, will he be working at Anfield next season as the head of the reinforcement department…?