Journalist claims ‘agreement’ has been reached over high-profile Liverpool exit to Saudi Arabia
According to reports from Saudi Arabia, Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes has reached an ‘agreement’ to take on a similar role with a club in the Middle Eastern country from the summer of 2026.
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The Scot took up his current position at Anfield two years ago after leaving Bournemouth, overseeing almost £450m worth of new signings in last summer’s transfer window whilst also brokering contract extensions for Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Ryan Gravenberch in the past 12 months.
However, if fresh claims which have emerged over the last 24 hours are to be believed, the 46-year-old mightn’t be at LFC for much longer.
Al-Hilal reportedly reach ‘agreement’ with Hughes
On Monday night, Saudi Arabian journalist Ahmed Al-Ajlan took to X to report that Al-Hilal have reached an ‘agreement’ with Hughes to take on the sporting director role with the Riyadh-based club.
It’s claimed that both parties have agreed terms for the move and a contract is merely awaiting to be signed. The current Liverpool chief is purportedly set to begin working with the Saudi Pro League outfit immediately ahead of offically ‘starting his duties’ in the summer.
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Could Liverpool soon need another new sporting director?
The first thing we’ll state is that this story is to be taken with a pinch of salt for now unless it’s corroborated by top-tier sources closer to Merseyside, so we’d advise against jumping the gun just yet.
However, the same Saudi Arabian course did report last Halloween (via X) that Al-Hilal were in ‘advanced negotiations’ to try and recruit Hughes, so it’d appear that this latest rumour hasn’t emerged completely out of the blue.
If there is substance to it and the 46-year-old is genuinely considering an exit from Liverpool for the Saudi club, it’d continue the trend of instability in the sporting director role at Anfield, which has seen multiple changes over the past four years.
Since Michael Edwards’ departure from that position in 2022 after six years in the job, Julian Ward and Jorg Schmadtke both came and went in the space of 20 months before the appointment of Hughes.
| Liverpool sporting directors since 2016 | From | To |
| Michael Edwards | November 2016 | June 2022 |
| Julian Ward | June 2022 | May 2023 |
| Jorg Schmadtke | June 2023 | January 2024 |
| Richard Hughes | June 2024 | present |
The incumbent has received criticism from some corners of the LFC fan base over his performance in the role since arriving from Bournemouth, although it wouldn’t be the most ideal scenario for FSG to be left needing yet another successor less than three months out from the summer transfer window.
Let’s see if any top-tier sources corroborate these initial reports in the meantime.
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