Rodgers decided on all Liverpool signings - Ayre
By Eoin Ryan | Updated: Tuesday, 03 Nov 2015 13:26 | Comments
Ian Ayre insists that the Liverpool manager has the final say on all Anfield transfers
Liverpool CEO Ian Ayre has played down the existence of a ‘transfer committee’ at the club and insists that former manager Brendan Rodgers always had the final say on players.
Rodgers’ recently appointed successor Jurgen Klopp has promised that he will have “the first word and the last word” on transfers but Ayre says that reports some signings were imposed on the Northern Irishman are off the mark.
“Brendan had the final say on all the players we signed,” Ayre told the Web Summit at the RDS in Dublin.
“There's only one person that has the final say over what players at Liverpool football club and that's Jurgen Klopp right now. That's always been the case for as long as I've been here.
“The words ‘transfer committee’ I think got used once and became this idea that we all sit round a table and have a vote on every player we sign. That couldn't be further from the truth.
“The point that has been made about the committee, and I don't think we did anything any different to most football clubs, is that the manager will say we are looking for somebody in this position and a bunch of people - a mix of traditional scouts and more recently analytical and digital-based information - bring all of that together as was always the case.
“Then we look at two, three, four players, the best players for that position, show them to the manager and the manager can go watch or have the scouts go watch those players and narrow it down. At that point I'll become more involved and start talking to clubs, agents, players on a negotiations basis and then the manager will choose.
“That's never changed. I've been at the football club eight years.
“The committee and we don't think of it as a committee, just the media do, is really a collaboration of all those people that all contribute to let the manager make that decision, and I think that's very smart."
Ayre also pointed out that the responsibilities of a Premier League manager means that they simply don’t have time to be involved in every part of the transfer process.
“Look at the last three months, we had a game every three days. When is the manager going to fly around the world and watch players? When is the manager going to negotiate with an agent?
“That's not the same as making the decision. The point is using smart processes and people, all of whom have all learnt at all manner of different football clubs and have great experience in the game. They are there to provide the manager with the best tools to make the best decision.”
By Eoin Ryan | Updated: Tuesday, 03 Nov 2015 13:26 | Comments
Ian Ayre insists that the Liverpool manager has the final say on all Anfield transfers
Liverpool CEO Ian Ayre has played down the existence of a ‘transfer committee’ at the club and insists that former manager Brendan Rodgers always had the final say on players.
Rodgers’ recently appointed successor Jurgen Klopp has promised that he will have “the first word and the last word” on transfers but Ayre says that reports some signings were imposed on the Northern Irishman are off the mark.
“Brendan had the final say on all the players we signed,” Ayre told the Web Summit at the RDS in Dublin.
“There's only one person that has the final say over what players at Liverpool football club and that's Jurgen Klopp right now. That's always been the case for as long as I've been here.
“The words ‘transfer committee’ I think got used once and became this idea that we all sit round a table and have a vote on every player we sign. That couldn't be further from the truth.
“The point that has been made about the committee, and I don't think we did anything any different to most football clubs, is that the manager will say we are looking for somebody in this position and a bunch of people - a mix of traditional scouts and more recently analytical and digital-based information - bring all of that together as was always the case.
“Then we look at two, three, four players, the best players for that position, show them to the manager and the manager can go watch or have the scouts go watch those players and narrow it down. At that point I'll become more involved and start talking to clubs, agents, players on a negotiations basis and then the manager will choose.
“That's never changed. I've been at the football club eight years.
“The committee and we don't think of it as a committee, just the media do, is really a collaboration of all those people that all contribute to let the manager make that decision, and I think that's very smart."
Ayre also pointed out that the responsibilities of a Premier League manager means that they simply don’t have time to be involved in every part of the transfer process.
“Look at the last three months, we had a game every three days. When is the manager going to fly around the world and watch players? When is the manager going to negotiate with an agent?
“That's not the same as making the decision. The point is using smart processes and people, all of whom have all learnt at all manner of different football clubs and have great experience in the game. They are there to provide the manager with the best tools to make the best decision.”
