After a year in his role as Liverpool’s sporting director, Julian Ward leaves the organization. But how productive was his time at Anfield?

Julian Ward’s time as the Reds’ sporting director is almost up now that Jorg Schmadtke has been hired by Liverpool.

The German will formally begin working on June 1 when Ward moves down after catching club executives off guard by giving his notice in November. After all, he had just recently taken over as sporting director from Michael Edwards the summer before.

As a result, Ward has only directly managed two transfer windows at Anfield. Nevertheless, he would spearhead Liverpool’s attempts in January 2022 before succeeding Edwards the following summer.

However, despite the fact that club executives wanted to appoint Schmadtke before the Premier League’s transfer window opened on June 14 to help with the transition from their departing sporting director, the already finished groundwork on the Reds’ upcoming business ensures that anyone signed in the summer will still be credited as being a “Ward signing.”

Ward is leaving Liverpool after 11 years and parting ways with the club in order to spend more time with his young family. The club’s announcement announcing Schmadtke’s appointment would include mention to this, according to FSG president Mike Gordon.

“At the same time that we welcome Jorg, we must also bid a fond farewell to Julian Ward, who has served us with unstinting diligence, fortitude, and energy in a number of roles, the most recent one being sporting director,” he said.

“We thank Julian for everything he has done for Liverpool FC over the past 11 years and wish him the very best for the future with his young family.”

When Edwards made his own exit announcement in November 2021, he stated of Ward, “As was the case with myself, I doubt you will hear much from him.”

He wasn’t off base. But unlike Edwards, Ward’s work can’t speak for itself because of his short tenure as Liverpool’s sporting director.

What is Ward’s Anfield legacy, and how will it be remembered in the future, despite his brief time serving as sporting director? In actuality, the response is ambiguous.

One may argue that the summer transfer window last year wasn’t all that productive.

After leaving Benfica for £64 million, which might increase to a club record £85 million with add-ons, the verdict is still out on Darwin Nunez. The Uruguayan would finish his debut season on Merseyside with 15 goals and four assists, which is more than respectable considering the criticism and jeering of rival fans.

The 23-year-old’s difficulties learning English, and therefore his difficulties comprehending and adjusting to the German’s demands, have been lamented by Jurgen Klopp as a factor in his sidelining near the end of the season. Throughout the course of the season, the striker would also experience a series of minor injuries.

Nunez is already a popular fan favorite, despite the fact that his debut season at Anfield was everything but easy. Because of this, his supporters are more than happy to give him a second chance.

But his ups and downs, as well as the records of Liverpool’s other summer additions, invite additional examination.

Only nine minutes of first team action were played by Fabio Carvalho for the Reds in the second half of the season, which covered the final four months of the campaign. The Portuguese, who is available for a summer loan, seems destined to spend the 2019–20 campaign away from Anfield, and Liverpool has previously turned down a permanent offer for his services. The long-term status of the 20-year-old is thus still unclear.

Calvin Ramsay, a Scotland international, similarly struggled to get playing time in his own debut season on Merseyside, making only two appearances during a season that was derailed by injury. When compared to Trent Alexander-Arnold, who was in the worst shape of his career, his unavailability and inexperience were much worse.

Then there is Arthur Melo, a last-minute loan acquisition from Juventus on the summer transfer deadline day in August of last year after a number of Liverpool’s midfielders had been sidelined by injury. He was injured himself in October and would never play in the Premier League, making only a brief appearance in the Champions League during Liverpool’s 4-1 loss to Napoli in September.

His arrival was made much more difficult to accept by the fact that Liverpool had spent the whole summer adamantly stating that they didn’t need a new midfielder, with such a renovation being put on hold until 2023. And that’s not even taking into account the Reds’ decision to give up on the pursuit of Jude Bellingham after forgoing bolstering their engine room in order to wait for the Borussia Dortmund player last year.

Last year, observers scrutinized these choices with understandable trepidation, but club executives swore there was a method to their madness. According to Reds sources, Edwards’ legacy is the clear blueprint he left for Ward and the staff in charge of the club’s football operations to follow.

As a result, it was said that Liverpool’s management team had a clear vision and, for better or worse, a strategy for executing it. Club insiders would acknowledge that the outcome would ultimately determine whether or not such a course of action was appropriate.

The fact that the Reds were eliminated early from the Champions League, both domestic cup competitions, and missed out on qualification for Europe’s premier competition the following season by placing fifth, although never even holding a top four slot all season, speaks for itself. Results this year imply that such a plan was not successful, which is a bit of a letdown after almost winning an unheard-of quadruple a year before.

It was theoretically impossible for Liverpool to make it into the Champions League for the upcoming season, as Mohamed Salah previously acknowledged on social media.

Even so, Ward’s tenure has not been a failure. Although Arthur might have been a last-minute bust who was unintentionally brought to Liverpool, it’s simply too early to make any conclusions about the Reds’ other three recruits.

Nunez, Carvalho, and Ramsay have faced numerous difficulties during their inaugural season at Anfield. However, none of the three can’t still be long-term winners even if the later two spend the upcoming season on loan. After all, Klopp has frequently referred to a project as a “long-term project.”

And while the Liverpool summer transfer window of 2022 can be brutally criticized, Ward’s grueling task of updating the Reds’ aging attack cannot be contested.

Salah, Sadio Mane, and Roberto Firmino were Liverpool’s go-to attack for a considerable amount of time. But the Reds will have just the Egyptian at Anfield when the 2023–24 season begins.

The two replacements for the Senegalese and the Brazilian, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo, appear to be the best options. Nunez may be viewed more negatively when compared to his fellow summer arrivals, but when viewed against the significant attacking additions made in back-to-back Januarys, a different picture emerges.

The future of Liverpool’s attack is promising when you add take into account that Ward helped Salah sign a new contract and secure Diogo Jota’s services with an extended term. According to the early indications, Ward accomplished what his supporters had previously deemed nearly impossible.

The hope is that his fingerprints on this upcoming summer’s work updating the midfield will be equally fruitful.

He leaves with a record of spending a total of £196.1 million on Diaz, Nunez, Ramsay, Carvalho, Arthur, and Gakpo after spending an initial total of £150.9 million on those players. He also assisted the club in raising up to £62 million for Sadio Mane, Takumi Minamino, Neco Williams, and Ben Davies. You would anticipate the club to gain money even if Carvalho or Ramsay don’t succeed at Anfield in the long run.

While the verdict is still out on Liverpool’s transfer activity from last summer, the Reds did not win any further significant trophies during Ward’s official tenure as sporting director. On-pitch outcomes, however, aren’t yet able to determine his success due to the long-term nature of such exercise.

He will have long gone left his Anfield position when it is appropriate to truly evaluate his job. Because of this, his Liverpool legacy has yet to be determined, despite this year’s shortcomings.

When Klopp’s revamped Reds team fully gels, Ward won’t be on the club’s books anymore. But make no mistake, Ward contributed significantly to the development of this Liverpool of the future before quickly handing off the reins before any accolades could be bestowed upon him.