Ian Graham, Liverpool’s former director of research, disclosed that he strongly opposed the club’s decision to sign a particular player.
Liverpool has earned a reputation for successful transfers, bringing in stars like Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, and Alisson Becker, as well as discovering talents such as Andy Robertson, Roberto Firmino, and Philippe Coutinho. However, not all transfers have been successful. For instance, Naby Keita and Mario Balotelli had challenging stints at Anfield.
In an interview with The Athletic, Graham revealed that he implored the club’s owners not to sign Christian Benteke. At the time, Brendan Rodgers, the Liverpool manager, was said to have been particularly fixated on Benteke.
Despite Graham’s reservations, Liverpool’s owners, Fenway Sports Group, proceeded with the £32.5 million transfer for the Belgian striker.
Graham explained, “I begged the owners not to sign Christian Benteke from Aston Villa in the summer of 2015, as I believed he wasn’t suited to Liverpool’s style. However, Rodgers was obsessed with him, and FSG paid the £32.5 million release clause.”
Benteke ultimately had a brief and underwhelming tenure at Liverpool, scoring just 10 goals in 42 appearances before moving to Crystal Palace and later to MLS’s DC United in 2022.
Graham also compared Rodgers with his successor, Jürgen Klopp, noting that Klopp’s open-minded approach marked a significant difference. He mentioned, “There was no drastic change in our analysis methods when Klopp took over. The processes and team remained the same. Klopp viewed players similarly to Michael Edwards, while Rodgers did not. Klopp, having no prior experience with data analysis in football, occasionally consulted us but did not integrate data into weekly tactical reviews.”
Graham added, “What set Klopp apart was his belief in the value of expertise and his receptiveness to data-informed recruitment and feedback from our video analysis team.”
