Liverpool has $88m transfer encouragement as Markus Krösche sporting director credentials clear
The hunt for Liverpool’s next sporting director continues. After two retirements in two years, first by Michael Edwards and then by Julian Ward, the Reds need to find a long-term successor to stabilize the back line.
However, finding a smart sporting director is a tricky business these days and replacing smart guys like Edwards and Ward won’t be easy. Mainly to find someone who could work well under the FSG’s strict budgetary policies.
But it seems the Reds may be getting closer and closer to a solution.
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The latest obvious candidate might just be an ideal fit for FSG and the way they like to work. According to The Athletic, Markus Krösche is one of the contenders to take over at Anfield.
The 42-year-old is relatively young and has only been working as a sports director in football for six years. But his track record of frugal spending is extremely promising when it comes to the FSG and Liverpool perspective.
Krösche initially started at SC Padeborn 07 and showed an excellent eye for talent right from the start. In his first season he brought 23-year-old Christopher Antwi-Adjei from the fifth tier of German football on a free transfer, who then made 146 appearances for the club, scoring 44 goals. He currently plays in the Bundesliga for VfL Bochum and has contributed eight goals in 16 games this season.
Other smart signings included Phillip Klement and 20-year-old Bernard Tekpetey from Schalke, who was then sold back to the same spot for more than 10 times the profit.
All in all, Krösche’s deals helped Paderborn rise to the Bundesliga in just two summer transfer windows and he was snapped up by RB Leipzig.
In Leipzig he signed Christopher Nkunku, Dominik Szoboszlai and Daniel Olmo and, shortly before his departure, agreed that Joško Gvardiol would join the club. All of these names are set to bring Leipzig big wins and Krösche impressively signed them for a total fee of just $88.2m (£73m/€82.8m). Not that bad.
The fact that he signed all four for under $100 million despite the hype surrounding them even before they arrived shows signs of a shrewd negotiator. Especially since all four were also under 21 when they arrived at the club.
In the summer of 2021 he moved to Eintracht Frankfurt, Krösche continued where he left off at RB Leipzig.
From loaning out a talent like Ansgar Knauff, to signing Kristijan Jakic from Dinamo Zagreb, to signing Jesper Lindstrøm big for just $7.4m (£6.2m/€7m), his recruitment alone helped in his first Season Frankfurt to win the Europa League and qualify for the Champions League.
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He skilfully used the summer again to build on this success and signed Randal Kolo Muani on a free transfer, who has since taken Frankfurt by storm. He also signed the experienced Mario Götze, whose form at Frankfurt has earned him a recall to the Germany national team, and brought in young talents such as Aurélio Buta, Faride Alidou and junior Dina Ebimbe, who have all made promising career starts at Frankfurt and who have bright futures represent for the club.
His recent transfer of USMNT prospect Paxten Aaronson also shows he always has an eye on different markets and isn’t afraid to explore regions outside of Europe. River Plate’s free transfer Colombian Rafael Borré is another example.
Another interesting side note is the fact that Krösche has signed three deals with Dinamo Zagreb (Olmo, Gvardiol and Jakic) in the last four seasons. Julian Ward obviously had his ties with Portugal, Michael Edwards had close ties with Red Bull and for Krösche that could end up being Croatia and that’s something to bear in mind when he joins the club.
With his track record of success throughout his career, it’s hard to argue against Krösche’s possible appearance at Liverpool FC. He’s always invested wisely, never overpaid but still managed to find exciting talent to enhance every team he’s been on.
This is exactly the kind of sporting director Liverpool need on the FSG model and Krösche could just be a perfect fit.