Jorg Schmadtke is in discussions to become new sporting director of Liverpool, and he previously signed a renowned former Reds striker in Germany.
The 59-year-old had previously served as sporting director for Alemannia Aachen, Hannover 96, FC Koln, and VfL Wolfsburg; consequently, the results were perhaps a tad lacklustre. There would be recognisable names, such as former Manchester United strikers, but no exceptional success story that would excite Liverpool fans about Schmadtke’s possible move to Anfield.
If the German does succeed in replacing Julian Ward, the verdict is still out. As long as current sporting director of Liverpool is in charge of the club’s summer transfer dealings, it will be several months before we can accurately evaluate the work of his potential successor, be it Schmadtke or someone else.
Still, there was one name on the German’s list of former acquisitions that could have piqued the interest of Reds fans: former Liverpool striker Erik Meijer.
The Dutchman joined on a free transfer from Bayer Leverkusen in July 1999, one of seven players signed by Gerard Houllier at the beginning of his first complete season as manager.
Kopites took to their preferred online search engines as soon as news broke that Liverpool were in conversations with veteran executive Jorg Schmadtke and that the German had emerged as a surprise front-runner to become the Reds’ next sporting director.
‘Who is Jorg Schmadtke?’ was the first query in Google’s search history. After that initial dive, however, there was something else that fans wanted to know: “Jorg Schmadtke’s best signings.”
