Julian Ward is reportedly expected to become Liverpool’s new sporting director, returning to the role for his second spell.

Ward has a long association with Liverpool, having initially joined as a scout back in 2012, and he previously worked as the club’s sporting director in the 2022/23 season.

According to David Ornstein of the Athletic, Ward is now in line to replace the departing Richard Hughes, who recently left for a move to Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal.

The report states that the 45-year-old is now looking like Liverpool’s preferred candidate, despite other names also recently being linked.

BBC Sport recently claimed that LFC spoke with Brentford’s Lee Dykes about the role, even if they were leaning towards an internal hire, which now looks set to materialise with Ward.

Julian Ward’s previous signings for Liverpool

Julian Ward (Getty Images)

In his previous stint as sporting director, Ward had a bit of a mixed record with his signings for Liverpool.

The Athletic note that Ward was in charge when the Merseyside giants brought in Luis Diaz, Cody Gakpo, and Alexis Mac Allister.

Those three all proved pretty strong signings for the club, but there was also the significant purchase of flop striker Darwin Nunez.

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It will be interesting to see what Ward can bring to the role this time, but Liverpool could really do with some strong work in the transfer market in the near future.

It’s been a challenging time for Liverpool as experienced big names like Mohamed Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ibrahima Konate, and Andrew Robertson have all left in quick succession.

Meanwhile, considerable money has been spent on slightly unconvincing signings like Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz.