Newcastle United are yet to make a move for a new sporting director since Dan Ashworth left the club, but one target now looks to be out of the running.
There are a number of names who have been linked with the position of director at Newcastle with former Liverpool man Michael Edwards believed to be one of them, though a move never materialise.
However, Fabrizio Romano now claims that Edwards is now close to re-joining Liverpool after previous reports claimed that he wasn’t looking to get back into a role at a football club.
Newcastle miss out on Ashworth replacement
Newcastle were dealt a huge blow when Ashworth announced that he would be leaving the club for a role at Manchester united less than two years after joining from Brighton.
It was hoped that Ashworth would be around for the long-term to help take Newcastle into this new era and develop them into a top European club before moving on to his next project, but it wasn’t to be.
Newcastle were well protected, however, thanks to Amanda Staveley’s negotiations as they are now demanding £20m from Man United to seal the move or else he’ll be on gardening leave for another 20 months.
In searching for a new director Newcastle had hoped that Edwards could be looking for a move back into a football club after starting up his own company, but that looked to be a long shot.
Now, Edwards looks set to make a comeback with his former club and Newcastle’s Premier League rival in what is a huge move for them with Jurgen Klopp leaving at the end of the season.
On X, Romano said: “Liverpool are close to getting the final green light for Michael Edwards’s return at the club, it’s imminent. Final details to be signed off before it’s sealed and announced — almost there. #LFC final attempt looks like it’s been the right one to get it done.”
Newcastle looking elsewhere for new director
There’s understood to be a long list of names that Newcastle are looking to replace Ashworth with the likes of Paul Mitchell, Richard Hughes and Tiago Pinto all having been named in recent weeks.
There are sure to be many more, but Newcastle will want to be thorough and take their time before going after one to make sure that he is the right candidate for the job, and they’ll want to avoid a similar situation from happening again.
Whoever it is they choose will have a very exciting job on their hands, one of the most exciting in football, and will certainly have a lot of work to do in trying to push the club back into the Champions League next season.
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