Michael Edwards Ever After
Goodnight, sweet prince.
For the love of God, please relax. Social media was packed full of your usual suspects last week. The guys who always seem to think the world is ending.
Those panic merchants feasted because Liverpool announced the departure of Michael Edwards, who’s been operating as Fenway Sports Group’s CEO of Football for the past two years.
Big news on the face of things, but really not that big of a deal once you delve a bit deeper.
So Edwards essentially returned for two reasons. First, to help Liverpool navigate life after Jürgen Klopp. And second, to explore multi-club ownership for FSG.
Alright, let’s start at the top. When Klopp announced his decision to call time on his Anfield tenure, the Reds had a relatively uncertain future in terms of structure and direction. Back then, the German was everything on Merseyside. He picked the team and mowed the lawn.
I’ve compared him to latter days Alex Ferguson at Manchester United on a number of occasions on this Substack, because Klopp eventually reached a point whereby he almost developed into an unorthodox sporting director of sorts.
By the end of his time at Liverpool, Pep Lijnders was taking the majority of the training sessions behind the scenes. Klopp cut more of a withdrawn figure. The ultimate leader letting others grow around him, while still fronting the media and standing up as the face of the operation.
Jörg Schmadtke even worked as Klopp’s dealmaker for a window, with the pair sharing the same agent. And Liverpool bought pretty well in that summer, landing Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and Dominik Szoboszlai.
But as a result of where Klopp landed by the end of his final campaign, there was a chance that everything would crumble after his exit. And that’s why Edwards came back.
Upon his return to Anfield, Edwards established a hierarchy. A structure that would offer a degree of stability beyond Klopp. He brought back Julian Ward and David Woodfine. And appointed Richard Hughes as Liverpool’s new sporting director, with the ex-Bournemouth suit destined to sit above the next head coach.
The word on the street suggests that virtually everything since that point has essentially been on Hughes. That’s when the baton was passed. The appointment of Arne Slot, the incomings, the outgoings. Of course, the suits work as a collaborative unit. But let’s be clear, Edwards worked for FSG — not Liverpool — and appointed Hughes to do the job that he no longer fancied.
As soon as Hughes started working at ground level on Merseyside, it’s reasonable to suggest Edwards turned most of his attention towards multi-club ownership. His job became finding a sibling for Liverpool to work in tandem with.
Edwards reportedly put forward several — as many as 25 — cases of interest. Bordeaux and Getafe originally grabbed the public spotlight, with rumours also surrounding Málaga, but nothing materialised.
In March of this year, news emerged that FSG had shelved their multi-club plans, with the reasoning behind their decision remaining largely under wraps. People speculated, of course they did.
As soon as that news broke, Edwards was kinda rendered redundant. He’d helped Liverpool move towards a life without Klopp at the helm, and he’d advised FSG about multi-club ownership, albeit without managing to get a deal over the line.
If we’re being honest, his departure has been in the post for four months, and it should come as no surprise that he’s resigned from his position. At surface level, I get that it looks worrying. But I’m not sure it is. It seems kinda normal as far as I’m concerned.
"When I returned, I was excited not only by the opportunity to help guide Liverpool through an important period of transition, but also by the chance to help shape FSG's wider football ambitions,” he said in a statement after his exit.
There you go. The horse’s mouth.
The problem, however, is that with Edwards now having departed, it feels like Liverpool are kinda no further forward in some departments, albeit with an extra Premier League title in the bag versus 2024.
Hughes is reportedly due to follow Edwards out of the door with a job waiting for him in the Middle East, and he’s only just appointed Andoni Iraola, meaning there’s another new era about to begin.
Now, it’s worth noting that there’s at least some structure in place compared to when Klopp left. And some of the next generation have been signed to lead the next dynasty in the likes of Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz, Jérémy Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni.
But we’re still in a strange place. Will Ward or Woodfine replace Hughes to establish an element of consistency next term? Surely Iraola will know what’s going on considering the guy who hired him doesn’t intend on sticking around to judge his performance in the role.
I’m kinda whatever on the multi-club ownership thing. I’ve been in favour of FSG linking one — and only one — club to Liverpool with both able to benefit, but while the logic is obvious on paper, the practical reality seems to be very different.
Most of the evidence out there seems to suggest those models don’t work, or at least not to the level you’d expect for whatever it would cost to acquire and run Bordeaux or Getafe. Unless you’re Red Bull, it seems to be really tricky.
It’s entirely possible that FSG are being cheap, with Edwards resigning from his role out of frustration. But it’s also possible that FSG have decided against the idea having consumed all of the evidence, watching their competitors experiment first as a means of gauging whether it’s worthwhile.
The immortal idea of the suits has been tarnished somewhat over the past 12 months. Since Edwards left last week, I’ve seen some pundits suggest his second spell won’t be remembered fondly. Things like that.
Well, I suppose that depends what you hold him accountable for. But I’d argue he was more of a loss in 2022 than now. This time around, he had a very specific remit. Two tasks. He worked for John Henry. Not us.
See you on the other side, Eddie.
It's recently come out in the press that Edwards informed FSG of his intention to leave last Autumn. Which means that this recent announcement is making waves outside of the club, but would barely be noticed inside - where it actually matters.
I think everyone is getting nervous at the seeming lack of transfer links and the slow start to the window, but this story is just noise.
Agree that Edwards' departure isn't surprising. During the 2024-25 season, the media covered the failed pursuits of Bordeaux, Getafe & Malaga. Edwards didn't need longer than a year of "evaluation" to decide to move on. A 2nd club was all about reducing cost & increasing benefits of "squad acquisition and development". FSG seem to be relying on a bigger investment in loans + academy as the more cost-effective alternative. You don't need a leader of Edwards' talent for that.
Given his strong relationship with Gordon (& the terms of his contract), Edwards probably stayed to assist with decisions regarding a "2nd transition". This 2nd transition is what should worry us as it's a massive change - in sporting director, manager, players & game model. We pivot from Hughes to an unproven Ward or Woodfine. Same with Iraola. Same with a new game model. All with a continuously changing team and squad, most of whom underperformed last season. Buckle up!