Michael Edwards identified wildcard Jürgen Klopp heir Liverpool would never have chosen

FSG secured the return of Michael Edwards as CEO of football at a critical time. One of his first tasks was to draw up a list of potential Jürgen Klopp successors at Liverpool.

Upon arrival, Edwards made it clear that the planned foray into multi-club ownership was a big factor in compelling him to return to the fold. Nor did he officially rejoin Liverpool, instead being absorbed into the ownership operation.

But he could not escape the fact that the initial priority was Liverpool, and specifically sourcing a Klopp heir. Edwards has made some other appointments first, with Richard Hughes joining as sporting director and Julian Ward returning to the club — and to a greater or lesser degree, they will have been involved in the manager search — but the really big announcement is on its way.

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It's thought that Arne Slot has landed the job. The Feyenoord boss clearly met a lot of the criteria Edwards laid out; only he will know exactly what boxes there were to be ticked, but the Dutchman is renowned for his man-management skills, is happy to work as a head coach as part of a wider division of powers, and employs relatively similar tactics to Klopp.

Not many had Slot picked out from the start, but it's very possible to work out how Edwards and the team might have landed on him. But it's been revealed that another name scored highly on the assessment Liverpool employed.

According to The Athletic, Michael Carrick was one of the names to stand out when Liverpool ran the numbers. The long-time Manchester United midfielder is currently the manager at Middlesbrough, where he narrowly missed out on making the play-offs this season.

In the previous campaign, Carrick did manage to take Middlesbrough into the top six, all the more impressive considering he took over in late October with the side 21st in the Championship table. After his first full season, his reputation is certainly intact, if not especially enhanced.

But for multiple reasons, this wildcard pick was never likely to be accepted by Liverpool. Even putting aside his Manchester United past, it would have been a huge gamble to go for somebody whose experience is limited to less than two full seasons in the second tier.

Liverpool.com says: Edwards wouldn't have been particularly perturbed by Carrick's links to Manchester United. Had he been deemed the right man for the job, there's little doubt the new CEO of football would have doubled down on the wildcard selection.

However, one of the valid considerations when choosing the new manager is assessing how well they might fare in filling the void left behind by Klopp, in aspects including connection with the supporters. It's hard to imagine that an Old Trafford stalwart would have been granted a great deal of patience if things started to go badly.

Still, Carrick does look like one to keep an eye on. He has made a promising start to his coaching career.