It seems like Liverpool have decided on their next coach. So, uh, why it a guy who’s only managed six Champions League matches … total?
I asked that question — and a couple others:
The first thing to remember here is that this is Liverpool. Former director of football Michael Edwards, who helped build the all-conquering squad of the past decade, is back, and the club's current director of research, Will Spearman, has a doctorate in physics from Harvard and helped discover the "God particle" before he was brought in to help figure out who might be a decent soccer coach.
The point is: Liverpool's managerial hiring process will be more rigorous, data-driven, targeted and objective than that of any other big club in the world. They know what they want from their coach and, unlike most other clubs, they've tried to figure out how to measure what they want from their coach.
This is why they've landed on a coach who no one really expected to become the next Liverpool coach back when Klopp announced he'd be leaving in January.
Also! Last week, I took part in a draft with my colleagues Julien Laurens and Gab Marcotti, along with Tor-Kristian Karlsen, the former sporting director at Monaco. The rules: pick the players born in 2002 who will have the best careers from here on out. The written version is here, but you can also watch it here:
My analysis: I love winning!