Julian Ward has officially returned to Liverpool as sporting director, having previously left the role in the summer of 2023 to become Fenway Sports Group's technical director. His reappointment comes at a time when the club is seeking to rebuild after a difficult 2025-26 campaign, and he will work alongside head coach Andoni Iraola, who is beginning to reshape the team's character.
Long-Standing Relationship
Ward and Iraola's connection goes back more than a decade. In 2013, Ward was Liverpool's scouting manager for Portugal and Spain and recommended Iraola as a potential signing to then-manager Brendan Rodgers during the January transfer window. Iraola ultimately chose to stay at his boyhood club, Athletic Club, but wrote Liverpool a letter thanking them for their interest, keeping communication lines open.
Iraola revealed on the club's pre-season tour of the United States that he might one day share the letter's contents if he proves successful as head coach. He also recalled an earlier interaction with Ward: "I knew Julian previously a little bit because he was head of loans before and I remember asking him when I was in the Spanish second division, asking him for a couple of players on loan that we couldn't get in the end." One of those players was understood to be Sepp van den Berg, who later joined Brentford for around £23m in the summer of 2024.
Contract Decisions Ahead
A key part of Ward's role will be deciding the future of several players whose contracts expire next summer. Virgil van Dijk, Alisson Becker, Joe Gomez, Kostas Tsimikas and Wataru Endo are all in this category, with decisions required once Ronald Araujo's loan from Barcelona ends.
Ward has a track record of securing key deals, having been instrumental in Mohamed Salah's contract extension in 2022 after months of talks with his agent, Ramy Abbas. He also worked over Christmas in 2022 to beat Manchester United to a £40m deal for Cody Gakpo, and his relationship with Alexis Mac Allister's camp helped facilitate the Argentina international's 2023 move from Brighton.
Strategic Partnerships and Youth Recruitment
One of the first agreements between Ward and the football operations department is reportedly the need to establish more strategic partnerships with clubs across European football. This follows FSG's decision to shelve plans for a multi-club ownership model, which had been in development since 2024 after Jurgen Klopp's departure. Ward and Michael Edwards, who left his role as FSG's CEO of football in the summer, had examined clubs including Bordeaux, Monaco, Malaga and Getafe.
Liverpool's approach at youth level has been aggressive, with the global talent department, led by Matt Newberry, bringing in several young players. In January, the club signed Mor Talla Ndiaye and Ifeanyi Ndukwe, both of whom impressed at the U-17 World Cup in Qatar in November 2025. Ndiaye, who joined from Aimite for around £1m, scored a stoppage-time winner for Liverpool's Under-21s against Reading on Saturday, while Ndukwe is now eligible for a UK work permit and is set to remain on loan at Levante.
Building for the Future
Other youth signings include Samuel Martinez, who will join from Atletico Nacional when he turns 18, and Genk's Lucca Brughmans, who became the most expensive teenage goalkeeper in football history in a £30m deal. French striker Djylian N'Guessan signed for £4.3m from Saint-Etienne and will join after a loan at Brest.
Iraola expressed confidence in the working relationship, saying: "Just being here every day and knowing how this place, this building (AXA Training Centre) works, I think this help [from Ward] will be very valuable. I think we haven't been working here [together] a lot but we know each other quite well. Obviously Pedro Marques (FSG's director of football development), David Woodfine (assistant sporting director), and other people working for the club, we talk to them basically every day. There is a clear understanding of what we are trying to do."
