When Richard Hughes knocked Liverpool out of the FA Cup
Richard Hughes is set to start work as Liverpool's new sporting director in the summer, joining the club as part of a restructured approach under the returning Michael Edwards.
Hughes will depart Bournemouth at the end of the season, having been first-team technical director at the south coast club since 2016 and part of the recruitment department since 2014.
His arrival in Liverpool's fresh structure, which will also see a new manager replace Jurgen Klopp, comes just over 20 years after Hughes enjoyed one of his greatest moments as a player by scoring a goal that knocked the Reds out of the FA Cup.
Hughes was born in Scotland, but the family was already based in Italy due to his father's career in publishing and as a youngster grew up in Milan. He turned down the chance to join AC Milan's youth ranks in 1989 when the club was at the peak of its powers as Europe's dominant force, but wound up joining Atalanta a few years later. His youth career then continued at Arsenal, although a first-team appearance for the Gunners never materialised before a 1998 transfer to Bournemouth.
The Cherries were a third-tier club at the time, far removed from the Premier League riches of 2024, but Hughes sufficiently impressed to earn a £50,000 transfer to Portsmouth in 2002 at a time when Harry Redknapp was building a team for a top flight promotion charge.
Hughes was ultimately primarily a squad player at Portsmouth, even spending part of his first season on loan at fellow second tier side Grimsby Town. But he was a reliable performer who was kept on for the entirety of the club's tumultuous seven-year run in the Premier League.
As a defensive midfielder, goals were not his strength. In fact, in 114 Premier League appearances, he didn't find
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