Richard Hughes has been confirmed as Liverpool's new sporting director and will start his new role at the end of this season.
Hughes, 44, spent a decade as Bournemouth's technical director before recently resigning from his role and is Michael Edwards' first appointment since being named Fenway Sports Group's [FSG] CEO of Football.
Edwards has had a long-standing desire to work with Hughes and they have a professional and personal relationship spanning over 20 years having previously worked together during Hughes' playing career at Portsmouth.
It is understood when Julian Ward left his role as Liverpool's sporting director last summer Edwards was surprised Hughes was not one of the candidates to be interviewed by club owners FSG.
"I am incredibly proud to be offered this opportunity. Liverpool FC is a unique club and I'm grateful to be given a chance to serve it in this capacity," Hughes told the club's website.
"People rightly talk about the rich history this organisation can boast, but it is the present and future which really excites me.
"It will be my job, working with Michael and leading the football operations team already in place, plus the wider staff at the AXA Training Centre, to make good decisions.
"That's really what the job entails: you have to make the kind of good decisions which enhance the prospects of having a team that wins and excites the supporters.
"It is what Liverpool have done well for a very long time and the benefits are there for everyone to see."
One of Hughes's first jobs will be to help find a successor to Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, who announced in January he will be leaving the club at the end of the season.
Also on Hughes's to-do list will be to try and convince the likes of Mohamed Salah, captain Virgil van Dijk and vice-captain Trent Alexander-Arnold to sign new deals at Anfield, with the trio's current contracts all currently set to expire in the summer of 2025.
Reacting to today's announcement, Edwards said: "I'm delighted Richard has agreed to join us in this vitally important position.
"I've known him for half of my life in a professional and personal capacity and he is absolutely someone who embodies the best values of Liverpool FC. I trust him completely.
"He has outstanding judgement and a track record of making smart decisions which benefit the organisations he represents.
"Both Richard and I are aware of the weight of responsibility that comes with working in this capacity for a club such as this. The fact he is excited and energised by the challenge ahead is important.
"It is clear to everyone that Jürgen will leave a legacy to build upon and in Richard we have the right person to make the key decisions and offer the leadership to take us forward into a bright future.
"As one very successful chapter will come to a close for Liverpool in the summer, the objective of everyone here is for another one to begin - and with Richard I am confident we have the right person in position for us to achieve this aim."
'Hughes has done incredible work at Bournemouth'
Sky Sports News' Mark McAdam:
"He's been working at the club for in excess of 10 years and has built up a very good relationship with Neill Blake who is the club's chief executive and built the club up through the leagues with Eddie Howe.
"He has a really good understanding of the Premier League and all the major leagues in Europe. He has been working as a technical director at the highest level for a good number of years. If you look at the work Bournemouth have done in the transfer window, developing young players, he's done an incredible job as Bournemouth don't have the biggest budget to work with. They have to be creative and clever.
"He has headed up the recruitment division, leading a team of very talented people working around him. But ultimately he has the final say along with the chief executive and manager on who they sign.”