Ex-Liverpool director Jorg Schmadtke feared transfer ‚mistake‘ with one summer signing
Former Liverpool sporting director Jorg Schmadtke has admitted he mistakenly did not believe that midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai was worth the €70m (£60m) fee the club paid.
Schmadtke recently left Liverpool after just nine months in charge of the club’s transfer dealings. Despite spending such a short time at the club, however, Schmadtke certainly made his mark, totally revamping the Reds‘ midfield options – forking out around £150m to sign Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and Wataru Endo.
Speaking about his experiences at Anfield in an interview with Die Zeit, Schmadtke admitted he has enjoyed being proven wrong about Szoboszlai’s value.
„You have to make mistakes in order to get better. I could certainly have saved myself some public statements,“ admitted Schmadtke. „[Some transfers cost] eight figures. Now in Liverpool there was someone who cost €70m, Dominik Szoboszlai, who we brought from Leipzig.
„Then I said: ‚It’s too expensive‘. From today’s perspective, that was a misjudgment on my part. The boy was an important Liverpool player from day one. He performed better than I would have expected him to.“
Since his transfer, the Hungarian midfielder has become an integral part of Jurgen Klopp’s plans at Anfield, playing 27 games in all competitions and earning rave reviews from Reds fans for his performances.
Schmadtke also took time to discuss his relationship with Klopp, revealing that his decision to leave after the January transfer window stemmed from the manager’s imminent exit from Anfield.
„I didn’t observe [Klopp walking on water], but he has special abilities,“ Schmadtke continued. „When he enters a room with four tired people sitting at the table, he recharges them. After a few minutes they are fit again and full of energy. It’s quite amazing.
„He is an exception when it comes to signing new players. If a transfer is not possible, then he accepts it – and falls in love with another player. I really appreciated that, there aren’t many coaches who can do that.
„This gift made our collaboration easier. Unlike the clubs in Germany, in Liverpool I was responsible for the transfers, but I mainly worked with Jurgen. I stopped everyone from knocking on his door. I no longer wanted to be part of the change process that began with the new coach.“