Where are they now? Liverpool’s first 13 signings of the Michael Edwards era
Michael Edwards enjoyed a successful decade at Liverpool, with the side winning both the Premier League and the Champions League during his time at Anfield.
Edwards originally joined from Tottenham as the club’s chief analyst before being promoted to the role of sporting director in 2016 and overseeing the signings of Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk among others.
With talk of Edwards returning to Anfield, we’ve investigated the first 13 signings of his first spell on Merseyside and where they are now.
Fabio Borini
You may associate Borini’s time in the Premier League with his role in one of Sunderland’s many escapology acts in the mid-2010s.
His time at Liverpool sticks less prominently in the brain, apart from the time he was sent off for a challenge that ripped Santi Cazorla’s shirt open.
After moving to Sunderland on a permanent deal in 2015, Borini has enjoyed spells with AC Milan, Hellas Verona and Fatih Karagumruk, before returning to Italy to help Sampdoria escape Serie B.
Joe Allen
Allen spent four years at Anfield before Jurgen Klopp offloaded him to Stoke.
“I actually had a text message from a friend congratulating me about making the move when I didn’t even know it was happening at the time,” Allen told the Daily Telegraph in 2017.
“Not knowing whether the club intend to sell you or keep you, especially when you’re trying to ask the question, is disappointing.”
The Wales international is now back at Swansea City, but retired from international football in 2023 after winning 74 caps for Wales.
Oussama Assaidi
Upon joining the club in 2012, Rodgers described Assaidi as “an exciting player…that will excite the crowd”. Assaidi did not excite the crowd.
Assaidi wasn’t necessarily a bad player, but the emergence of Raheem Sterling meant that first-team opportunities were limited.
After spending two years on loan at Stoke, the winger left for Al-Ahli Dubai in 2015 before announcing his retirement in 2019 following a spell with FC Twente.
Daniel Sturridge
Sturridge’s career looked in danger of a premature end after being handed a four-month ban in March 2020 for breaching betting rules.
The former England striker expressed a desire to return to the Premier League after leaving Turkish club Trabzonspor but then signed a contract with A-League side Perth Glory.
Their chairman, Tony Sage, said: “Daniel is undoubtedly one of the biggest signings not only in Glory’s history, but in the history of the A-League.”
But Sturridge left the club in June and is now bothering Roy Keane as part of his punditry work for Sky Sports.
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Philippe Coutinho
He left acrimoniously, but Coutinho was superb on his day in a Liverpool shirt – the man was an absolute magician and had the quality to single-handedly win games under Rodgers and Klopp
It’s mad to think how quickly Liverpool moved on without him, but it’s hard to argue with a player you signed for £8.5million and sold for around £142million.
Whereas Liverpool transformed themselves into European champions, Coutinho flopped at Barcelona and is currently shuffling around for Qatar Stars League club Al-Duhail.
Nuri Sahin
Twelve games, three goals. Not exactly what Liverpool fans were expecting when Sahin was snared from Borussia Dortmund in 2012. Still, at least he only joined on loan.
The attacking midfielder retired in 2021 and became the manager of Turkish club Antalyaspor. Sahin spent his final season as a professional footballer with the same club, helping them narrowly avoid relegation from the Turkish top flight.
Luis Alberto
Alberto’s career at Anfield flashed by in the time it takes you to brush your teeth in the mornings.
Signed from Sevilla for £6.8million in the summer of 2013, the attacking midfielder made nine appearances during Brendan Rodgers’ doomed title challenge without ever threatening to find the net.
Sold by Klopp three years later, Alberto became a key part of the Lazio team and made his debut for Spain in 2017.
Basically, he’s a lot better than Liverpool fans would remember.
Iago Aspas
He may be thriving at Celta Vigo well into his mid-30s but we still can’t get over that corner.
A REMINDER:
Throwback to this legendary corner by Iago Aspas at Liverpool 😂pic.twitter.com/crEE4J5CxD
— Football Remind (@FootballRemind) June 15, 2018
Simon Mignolet
Displaced by Loris Karius (ouch) and then Alisson (understandable), Mignolet left Liverpool after the Champions League win in 2019 and returned to his native Belgium with Club Brugge.
Kolo Toure
His brainfart at West Brom may stick in the memory of Liverpool fans but Toure was an extremely good player throughout his long career.
The Ivory Coast defender saw out his playing career in style, winning a Treble and going unbeaten throughout the entire domestic campaign with Celtic in 2016-17.
After announcing his retirement, Toure has coached at Celtic, Leicester and Ivory Coast. He was last seen managing Wigan Athletic during their doomspiral into League One last season.
Aly Cissokho
It’s safe to say Cissokho was a liability at Liverpool, whose sole season at Anfield will live long in the memory – for all the wrong reasons.
The centre-back now plays his football in Thailand for Lamphun Warrior following spells in Portugal, Greece and Turkey.
READ: Forget the Unbearables, Aly Cissokho’s banter season deserves its own movie
Mamadou Sakho
Sakho impressed during his first few seasons at Liverpool, a string of disciplinary issues culminated in his £26million move to Crystal Palace in 2017.
The defender made a bright start to his Palace career but has been plagued by injury problems over the last two seasons and was released at the end of the 2020-21 season.
In July 2021, Sakho signed a contract with French side Montpellier. He has just left the club after clashing with manager Michel der Zakarian in training, posting the immortal line: “I decline all responsibility,” on social media.
Victor Moses
Remarkably still only 32 years old, Moses spent a single season at Liverpool before returning to parent club Chelsea in 2014.
Only becoming a regular starter as a wing-back under Antonio Conte, the Nigeria international only left Stamford Bridge in 2021 to join Spartak Moscow on a permanent deal.
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