Richard Hughes moves closer to Saudi Arabia as biggest Liverpool fumbles come to light

Richard Hughes the Liverpool sporting director has been heavily linked in recent days with a move to Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Pro League giants Al-Hilal look set to appoint the Scotman as their new sporting director - bringing down the curtain on a two-year spell at Anfield.

Hughes was appointed in the post-Jurgen Klopp FSG shakeup - which also saw Michael Edwards return to the fold.

There can be little argument that Hughes’ role in hiring Arne Slot proved to be a smart decision - last season at least.

The Dutchman was courted by Hughes when it became apparent that he would be leaving Feyenoord - and he subsequently led the club to the Premier League title.

Having just come out of a Champions League-less season the club’s transfer activity was light-touch - spending only on Federico Chiesa.

But having Slot guide Klopp’s squad was enough to secure a 20th top-flight crown.

Hughes fumbles Liverpool's position of strength

Since that title win there have been plenty of missteps. Liverpool have been nowhere near as powerful in the Premier League this season - slumping to a fight for fifth place.

It wasn’t supposed to be like this - particularly after Hughes oversaw £450m worth of spending in the summer transfer window.

Plenty of money was secured in sales - it has to be added - but all those deals in such a short space of time have radically destabilised Liverpool’s all-conquering squad.

Replacements for title-winners haven’t been up to par - with question marks aplenty over big-money arrivals including Alexander Isak, Hugo Ekitike and Florian Wirtz.

Over time we do expect those to get better - but in the meantime Reds’ fans are left watching a team who have suffered a massive drop-off.

Hughes' legacy if he does leave this summer will be a mixed one with fans grateful for his role in the title win. But it’s all unravelled under his tutelage this season and not many fans will be distraught when he leaves.

Hughes' biggest mistakes

Here we run through three catastrophic Richard Hughes errors that have seriously ruined Liverpool.

Renewing Mo Salah

Harsh as it may sound but Liverpool should never have renewed Mohamed Salah’s contract. The 33-year-old ended up as top scorer, top assister and Premier League player of the year last season.

How difficult would it have been to let him go for nothing? Very. But these are the kinds of decisions that executives must make every day and Hughes has clearly got this one wrong.

Salah is making £400k per week until 2027 - adding to Liverpool’s already inflated wage bill. That £41m + in salary would have been justifiable if Salah remained at the top of his game.

The fact of the matter is that he is not - whether through a drop-off in his own levels or inept usage by Arne Slot.

Even if he left he was never going to be a threat against Liverpool - as all his suitors were likely to be in Saudi Arabia.

A fall-out with Slot suggested that “someone” wanted Salah out of the club - with it being hinted that the Premier League champions were perhaps seeking to cash in and make back a transfer fee.

Compare that outcome to a dignified send-off as a Premier League champion. Salah should have been told “no new deal” and allowed to find ample remuneration elsewhere. Hughes blinked first and has cost Liverpool a fortune.

Selling Luis Diaz

With Diaz’s deal running down in 2027 it was decided to offload him to Bayern Munich for £60m. That was a massive mistake in hindsight as Liverpool have been simply unable to find a replacement.

From his goals to his work-rate - and ability to fill in at No9 - it’s now clear that Diaz was an underappreciated asset. He has gone on to score 21 goals in 37 Bayern games in his debut season and he’s not done yet.

Liverpool were unwilling to meet Diaz’s contract demands - said to be around £140k to £150k per week. Instead they offloaded him and gave Cody Gakpo a bumper new deal on around £250k per week.

They’ve been left short on the left of attack as a consequence and for all his on-the-ball quality Wirtz is getting nowhere near his No7 predecessor’s 13 Premier League goal total from last season.

Missing out on Guehi

Liverpool were broadly seen to have “won the window” last summer - adding quality player after quality player. But their chase for a much-needed centre-back went right down to the wire.

Ultimately Marc Guehi stayed at Crystal Palace through the summer transfer window - with Hughes’ strategy of leaving it late backfiring.

The Reds came out empty-handed in their attempts to sign the England man - who subsequently joined Manchester City in January.

Unforgivable.

Liverpool are short of senior centre-backs - often using all three at once with Joe Gomez appearing at right back.

Guehi was the missing piece of the jigsaw; an alternative to the error-prone Ibrahima Konate, a long-term successor to Van Dijk and a player who could facilitate a move to a back three.

Imagine what Palace were thinking when Liverpool paid £26m for Giovanni Leoni - an unproven 18-year-old from Parma - and then haggled hard for the battle-hardened Guehi?

This was the wrong strategy and it’s cost Liverpool big-time.

Richard Hughes is sleeping on the job

We could add a few more in here that are worth a quick mention.

Paying £130m for an injury-prone Alexander Isak - whose first season has been a complete write-off.

Botching the Trent Alexander-Arnold contract negotiations. Losing the right-back has collapsed Liverpool completely. He should have been prioritised even ahead of Van Dijk and Salah.

Selling Tyler Morton. The young midfielder is easily good enough to fill out Liverpool’s first-team squad. Why he was allowed to leave - for a measly £8m - is a mystery. He will be a top player one day and sadly not for Liverpool.

Not everyone is going to agree with the next one but signing Florian Wirtz ahead of Rayan Cherki. Wirtz is a fine player but represents no value at £116m given his current output. City got Cherki from Lyon for around a quarter of that price and he’s been the better between the two this season.

And let’s just add missing a deal for the other Rayan for good measure. The 19-year-old joined Hughes' FORMER CLUB in Bournemouth in January when Liverpool were crying out for a new winger.

The former Vasco da Gama forward has hit the ground running and is now in Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazil squad.

Not for the first time Hughes was sleeping on the job.

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