Statement signing lined up, three new contracts - Richard Hughes Liverpool transfer verdict
Liverpool will have their fourth sporting director on site at the AXA Training Centre when Richard Hughes formally begins on June 1.
Having served with distinction as the club's maiden sporting director between 2016 and 2022, Michael Edwards was replaced by his assistant Julian Ward nearly two years ago before his brief stint saw Jorg Schmadtke take over on a temporary basis.
Schmadtke's one-year agreement was cut short at the end of the January transfer window with Hughes now slated to leave his position at Bournemouth to start at Liverpool from the end of the current campaign.
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Here, the ECHO's Liverpool writers outline what will be in Hughes's in-tray and what the most pressing concern will be.
Show Champions League-chasing Liverpool mean business
Paul Gorst: Richard Hughes may be of the belief that Liverpool's squad only needs minor adjustments this summer.
But with Thiago Alcantara and Joel Matip set to free up a significant chunk of change on the wage bill, ambition to ensure the Reds don't take a backwards step without Jurgen Klopp needs to be at the forefront of the thinking.
That doesn't necessarily mean a spendthrift, Chelsea-style approach to proceedings but with the Reds back in the Champions League, Liverpool must take a proactive and aggressive approach to their dealings this summer.
Who those targets are will be revealed in due course but the Reds need a centre-back, defensive midfielder and potentially a centre-forward and anything less than an emphatic transfer window will lead to inevitable questions, fairly or not, about a club
Read on liverpoolecho.co.uk
