Who really signed Liverpool's MVP? The people in charge of transfers at each Premier League club

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Long gone are the days when managers alone ran the rule over players coming in and out of a football club. 

Nowadays, the reality is that managers and coaches are left to concentrate more on what they’re good at, you know, managing and coaching.

Meanwhile, more and more clubs are following the European model of installing a director of football to oversee transfers and ensure a club remains on the right path regardless of changes in the dugout.

With that in mind, who are the mystical figures running the ins and outs in the Premier League right now?

Squawka has taken a look at all 20 clubs to breakdown who is in charge of player recruitment and why they were appointed in the first place.

Arsenal 

Sven Mislintat

The 46-year-old was brought in as head of recruitment by Ivan Gazidis and Arsene Wenger a little over a year ago.

Mislintat was charged with replicating the success of spotting talent he had achieved at Borussia Dortmund, but reports suggest he is set to leave north London.

The Gunners are in the market for a technical director and an impending organisational restructure could decide Mislintat’s future.

Bournemouth 

Richard Hughes

The former Scotland midfielder heads up the recruitment department courtesy of his role as technical director.

Andy Howe, Eddie’s nephew, has a key position as Head of First-Team UK Player Recruitment but it is the manager who has the final say.

Brighton & Hove Albion

Dan Ashworth

The south coast club are in a state of flux. Paul Winstanley is their current Head of Recruitment while Dan Ashworth is set to take up a newly created position of technical director in the spring.

Ashworth fulfilled the same role at the FA and will arrive with a stellar reputation – and great expectations – in tow.

Burnley 

Mike Rigg

Mike Rigg was appointed as technical director at Turf Moor in November 2018 and heads up the process of talent identification and recruitment throughout the whole club, from Academy to first team.

Rigg has previously worked as Head of Player Acquisition at Manchester City and, along with manager Sean Dyche, reports directly to Burnley chairman, Mike Garlick.

Cardiff City 

Neil Warnock and Glyn Chamberlain

Cardiff are one of the more old fashioned Premier League clubs in terms of player recruitment, with manager Neil Warnock still holding massive sway over transfers.

Backed by owner Vincent Tan, Warnock works alongside scouts John Vik and old friend Glyn Chamberlain to identify and secure targets.

Chelsea

Marina Granovskaia

Marina Granovskaia began working as Roman Abramovich’s PA at his oil company and has become more and more involved with his dealings at Chelsea ever since.

The Russian-Canadian is charged with managing contracts and transfers at Stamford Bridge – a job that often finds her at loggerheads with Chelsea managers – and was appointed as the club’s chief executive in 2014 – an appointment that made her the ‘most powerful woman in football’ according to the Times.

Crystal Palace

Dougie Freedman

The Palace legend was appointed sporting director during Frank de Boer’s ill-fated reign in south London, with Steve Parish citing a desire to have someone working “on all the footballing aspects of the club” with him, the manager and the Head of Recruitment.

Chief scout Tim Coe departed in September 2018 while Ben Stevens – Head of Recruitment & Performance Analysis – remains part of Roy Hodgson’s backroom staff.

Everton

Marcel Brands

After the shambolic recruitment scheme under Steve Walsh and Ronald Koeman in 2017, which saw Everton sign more attacking midfielders than they could fit through the Goodison Park doors, the Toffees needed a total overhaul.

The man that has been charged with restoring some vision and longevity to Farhad Moshiri’s stuttering revolution is Dutchman, Marcel Brands. The 56-year-old arrived on the blue half of Merseyside with a burgeoning reputation following his exploits with PSV Eindhoven and looks to be building a squad full of vibrant, young talent, with the likes of Richarlison, Yerry Mina and Lucas Digne all coming into the club in the summer, also clearing out a lot of deadwood along the way.

Fulham 

Tony Khan 

Son of Fulham owner, Shahid Khan, Tony Khan was named as vice chairman and Director of Football Operations at Craven Cottage in February 2017.

Since then, Fulham have fought their way into the Premier League and undertaken one of the most ambitious recruitment drives seen in recent years, bringing in no fewer than 12 players over the summer, including Jean Michael Seri and Alfie Mawson.

Huddersfield Town

Olaf Rebbe

Despite the recent departure of David Wagner as manager, Huddersfield Town are one of many clubs in England that are following the German model of recruitment. The latest sign of that came back in May 2018, when Olaf Rebbe arrived in Yorkshire following an 18-month spell as Wolfsburg’s sporting director.

Rebbe, however, has a lot to prove after that unsuccessful stint at Wolfsburg and his biggest challenge will be hiring a replacement for Wagner who can drag Huddersfield out of the very precarious situation they find themselves in right now.

Leicester City 

Eduardo Macia

Leicester City’s recruitment in recent years has been nothing short of glorious. Firstly, Steve Walsh uncovered gems such as N’Golo Kante and Riyad Mahrez to help the Foxes win that improbable league title back in 2016. Since Walsh’s departure to Everton, the man in charge of transfers at the King Power has been Head of Senior Player Recruitment, Eduardo Macia.

The Spaniard may not have secured another glorious success of that standing, but, alongside director of football Jon Rudkin, he has been responsible for the likes of Harry Maguire and James Maddison arriving at Leicester – impressing enough for the likes of West Ham and Bordeaux to reportedly be seeking his expertise.

Liverpool

Michael Edwards

After Brendan Rodgers’ appointment at Liverpool temporarily scuppered the plans, the Reds finally created the position of sporting director in 2016, with Jurgen Klopp a massive advocate of the structure following his time with Borussia Dortmund.

Michael Edwards, a man who much prefers to work in the shadows and stay away from the limelight, has been the incumbent of this particular position so far and has overseen a massive transformation in fortunes at Anfield. The likes of Mohamed Salah, Andrew Robertson and Sadio Mane have all come in for comparatively cheap prices during Edwards’ tenure, while the Southampton born man has also seen Liverpool become much more decisive when going for prime targets – Virgil van Dijk and Alisson Becker are just two examples of that.

Manchester City

Txiki Begiristain

After starting his career as a director of football with Barcelona in 2003, former winger Txiki Begiristain joined Manchester City in the same capacity in 2012.

The Spaniard is the key link between Pep Guardiola and the financial powers at the Etihad and has been instrumental in helping build multiple title-winning sides for City, bringing in players such as Fernandinho, Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling. Begiristain is arguably the most successful example of the modern structure now in place at elite football clubs.

Manchester United

Ed Woodward

So, Manchester United are a slight anomaly among the absolute giant football clubs right now in that they split responsibilities when recruiting players.

However, the man with the most say in dealings is Ed Woodward, and we’ve all heard a lot about him in recent months, haven’t we? It is widely reported that it was his total breakdown with manager Jose Mourinho that caused the Red Devils to miss out on some prime targets over the summer, eventually leading to the Portuguese manager losing his job.

Recent rumblings suggest United will finally appoint a director of football soon. Peter Schmeichel has stated his desire to take up the role, with former Spurs man Paul Mitchell also a rumoured target.

Newcastle United

Steve Nickson

Despite Mike Ashley appearing to give every Newcastle manager a bag of KP peanuts with which to do their transfer dealings, the man in charge of actually finding players is Steve Nickson.

Nickson, a former U21s scout for Newcastle, replaced Graham Carr as Head of Recruitment at St James’ Park in 2017 and has since been helping Rafa Benitez patch together a side to keep the Magpies in the Premier League.

Southampton

Ross Wilson

Southampton has to be one of the most challenging jobs when it comes to player recruitment, given how much they cash in on their star talent. And reflective of that is their current structure, which is ramshackle at best.

Les Reed left his role of Head of Football Development in November – putting more emphasis on manager Mark Hughes, who was soon sacked.

Ross Wilson, who is the club’s Director of Football Operations and a board member, is expected to stay in his current role and will have a significant say in the future structure alongside chairman Ralph Krueger, although Julien Fournier, man responsible for bringing Patrick Viera to Nice, is reportedly being lined up as director of football.

Tottenham Hotspur

Daniel Levy

Responsibility is shared at Spurs, with John McDermott – Head of Coaching & Player Development – and Steve Hitchen – Chief Scout – both part of Mauricio Pochettino’s inner circle.

The manager has a say on targets but, ultimately, it is Daniel Levy – the club’s chief negotiator – who gets the deals over the line. His fearsome reputation means that Spurs are not to be taken lightly and are run like the tightest of ships.

Watford

Filippo Giraldi

Filippo Giraldi has been Watford’s technical director since 2012 and has seen the Hornets make some very astute signings since then – Abdoulaye Doucoure and Gerard Deulofeu are chief among them.

Giraldi is backed by the Pozzo family, who seem to take great pleasure in holding a trap door behind each manager they appoint, while Andy Scott was appointed as UK Football Recruitment Director with a primary focus on the UK and the club’s academy in 2011.

West Ham United

Mario Husillos

The Hammers’ transfer approach has appeared to resemble a scattergun in recent years with owners not afraid to dip their toe into transfer dealings.

But Husillos’ arrival means that procedures are likely to change, having been brought in on a three-year deal last summer.

The Argentinian knows manager Manuel Pellegrini well, having worked with him at Malaga.

Wolves

Kevin Thelwell

Thelwell has served as sporting director since late 2016, having originally joined the club as academy manager in 2008.

His role incorporates coaching, performance analysis, medical services, sport science and recruitment and he has been cited as a key reason behind the club’s upwards trajectory under Nuno Espírito Santo.

Jorge Mendes’s broad range of clients have also been leaned on.

The post Who’s really in charge of transfers for each Premier League club? appeared first on Squawka News.



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