Jorg Schmadtke is the current favourite to become Liverpool's new sporting director and will have a busy window ahead of him if selected as the right candidate.
The Reds are in need of a rebuild this summer after a season which has seen the shortcomings of the squad brutally exposed on multiple occasions. Midfield reinforcements are expected to be a priority, having failed to address the need for additional options in this area in the last two years.
Liverpool cannot afford to make many mistakes when conducting their recruitment in the coming weeks, or risk the prospect of falling further behind Manchester City next season.
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Should Schmadtke be appointed by the Reds, there is one transfer in particular he will look to avoid a repeat of on Merseyside. During his time working with Wolfsburg, the 59-year-old made a costly error with now Napoli striker Victor Osimhen. After 16 appearances without a goal, the Nigerian forward was loaned to Charleori after failing to make a positive impression.
Finding the back of net didn't prove to be an issue while at the Belgian side, on target 20 times in all competitions during his temporary stay. Shortly after the end of the 2018/19 season, Charleroi activated the €3.5million (£3.1m) option to buy Osimhen before selling him on to Lille for €22m (£19.5m) just a month later.
Further success followed at Lille, reaching 18 goals in 38 appearances before the remainder of the 2019/20 campaign was curtailed due to the coronavirus pandemic. European were reluctant to spend big in the months that followed the outbreak of COVID-19, having been financially hit hard, though this did not stop Napoli paying a club-record €70million (£62m) to acquire the services of the 24-year-old.
Taking to Serie A with ease, Osimhen has continued to score at an impressive rate and his 22 league goals this term have played a key role in bringing to an end Napoli's long wait for a league title. A number of clubs are now understood to be eyeing a summer deal for the forward, who would cost in excess of £100million if his current employers decide to cash in.
The rapid rise of the Lagos-born attacker has caught many by surprise, perhaps none more so than Schmadtke. Julian Ward's potential successor has since held his hands up over his miscalculation of Osimhen, admitting he has learned a valuable lesson from this experience.
“It wasn’t a good move, in hindsight,” he said during an interview with Kicker. “When I came, he was limping and running in circles. I was told that the strikers we had weren’t good enough.
“The most important lesson is that you have to be patient with some transfers. You can't say, ‘we'll sign you up, provide board and lodging, and then it'll work’. The importance of patience is sometimes underestimated.”
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