Michael Edwards tipped for shock Liverpool return

There is an 'ideal opportunity' for former Liverpool sporting director Michael Edwards to be tempted back to the club in the post-Jurgen Klopp shakeup, according to a report. 

Klopp’s seismic announcement last Friday that he would be stepping down at the end of the season sent shockwaves through the football world. 

The Reds have set about their search to replace the 56-year-old manager and there are also a string of backroom roles to fill. 

Coaches Pep Lijnders and Peter Krawietz - as well as Elite Development Coach Vitor Matos - will all be leaving at the end of the current campaign, meaning a full overhaul at Anfield will be required. 

Also primed for the exit is sporting director Jorg Schmadtke, who only commenced work last summer, who leaves the club at the end of this transfer window. 

He succeeded Julian Ward, who was also a short-term incumbent in the role, having replaced Edwards only a matter of months earlier. 

Liverpool have been linked with the appointment of a new sporting director in the shape of Bournemouth’s Richard Hughes and there could also be a new senior role carved out for Edwards if he were to turn. 

According to the Daily Mail, now “would be an ideal opportunity” to lure Edwards back to Anfield. He spent a total of 11 years at the club, working as head of analytics before progressing to become Liverpool’s first-ever sporting director in 2016. 

He oversaw some of the most important signings in the club’s history - Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Alisson Becker among them - and also brought in good money for departures such as Philippe Coutinho as well as a host of fringe players. 

Edwards is currently working on the data consultancy Ludonautics, which he set up, and is known to be working with Bolton Wanderers among other clubs. 

The Mail claims Edwards would not seek to return to a club sporting director role but added that the Reds could carve out a position for him in a new structure. 

He has also been linked to the new era at Manchester United where Sir Jim Radcliffe's INEOS operation have now taken control of football matters.

It promises to be a tumultuous time on Merseyside when Klopp leaves and having a steady hand on the wheel in the shape of Edwards might help secure Liverpool’s future.