Julian Ward is set to leave his post as Liverpool’s sporting director.
Ward, 41, was appointed to the lead role on recruitment in the summer after serving as assistant sporting director to Michael Edwards, who left in June.
But the Liverpool-born director’s decision to step down has arrived as a shock to the Anfield hierarchy, having spent barely six months in his new position.
No explanation for Ward’s decision has been given but he is understood to have intimated plans to take a break at the end of the current campaign.
The Reds are now assessing whether to continue with the sporting director model first introduced by Edwards in 2016 which is favoured by Jurgen Klopp.
Chief executive Billy Hogan will be involved in any final decision alongside the Liverpool manager, who has worked closely with both Edwards and Ward.
Further changes to the talent identification setup are expected with director of research Ian Graham also set to leave after tending his resignation in June.
Ward joined his hometown club in 2012 from Manchester City, starting out as European scouting manager before later moving onto loans and pathways.
He enjoyed a close working relationship with head of recruitment Dave Fallows and chief scout Barry Hunter, who hold key roles in transfer strategy.