Edwards will stand down from his role as sporting director at the end of the season
Liverpool have confirmed that sporting director Michael Edwards will step down from his role and leave the club at the end of the season.
The news was revealed in an official statement on the website which also confirmed that Edwards’ replacement will be Julian Ward.
It said: “Liverpool Football Club has today announced future changes to the structure of its football operations leadership, with the news that Michael Edwards will step down as sporting director at the end of this season.
“The 42-year-old has given notice to the club’s ownership of his wish to pursue a new challenge when his contract ends, allowing for a carefully managed and orderly transition to take place.
“Julian Ward, currently assistant sporting director, will be promoted after Edwards’ departure, taking on the more senior role. The 40-year-old previously held the position of director of loan management.
“Other senior members of Liverpool’s football operations department will remain and will continue to be integral to setting and implementing the club’s football strategy.”
Edwards also posted an open letter to fans in which he said: “Ten years, that’s a pretty long time in anyone’s working life. In football terms, it is an era in itself, particularly at a club like Liverpool where the expectations and standards are never anything other than as high as the supporters deserve.
“To be part of this club during this period has been a privilege due to the people I have been fortunate enough to work with and the success we have enjoyed.
“But all good things must come to an end and, in my case, I recently completed my final summer window as Liverpool sporting director. Even writing those words seems a bit surreal, but at the end of this season I will pack up my laptop and leave my office at the AXA Training Centre for the last time.
Edwards revealed the reasons behind his decision to leave Liverpool further on in his letter.
He said: “As with most people my age, I would often watch Liverpool on the TV when I was growing up, with them being one of the most dominant sides in English football in my earlier years. I would spend hour upon hour in my back garden trying to replicate my idols from the television screen but it goes without saying that I never came close to any of them, though it wasn’t for the want of trying.
“Even as a kid, I knew the way Liverpool players represented this club set a standard for everyone to live up to. You literally had to be the best, or be capable of contributing to being the best as part of a collective, so not in a million years did I imagine back then that I would actually end up at Anfield and certainly not in the role I have operated in for the past five years.
“I had always planned to cap my time at the club to a maximum of 10 years. I’ve loved working here, but I am a big believer in change. I think it’s good for the individual and, in a work setting, good for the employer, too.
“Over my time here we have changed so many things (hopefully for the better) but someone new brings a different perspective, new ideas and can hopefully build on (or change) the things that have been put in place beforehand.
“That’s how I believe businesses/football clubs stay ahead; you need to evolve and at the heart of this kind of process is always people. That evolution has always been central to Liverpool’s history and I hope that this is one thing that doesn’t change.
“As my wife would testify, I’m not great at the here and now. I’ve always looked ahead and for the past couple of years I’ve known that the time for me to leave this role was approaching and I think it is entirely fitting that the person to take over from me is Julian Ward.
Edwards’s departure from Anfield sparked several rumours that he may be set to join Newcastle United in the summer, however the Liverpool Echo have said that the 42-year-old has no interest in being part of the set-up at St James’ Park.
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