Liverpool are moving closer to naming who will take over from Jurgen Klopp as manager.
The Reds have been searching for the right man to replace the German ever since he announced his decision to leave in January.
So far there have been a number of twists along the way, with early front-runner Xabi Alonso surprising everyone by turning down a potential return to Anfield to stay at Bayer Leverkusen.
Ever since Alonso made his decision, a number of names have seemingly been in play for Liverpool.
However, after news broke last night that the man considered by many as the new favourite – Ruben Amorim – is now meeting with West Ham instead, that shortlist has been whittled down further. Now, journalist David Ornstein has brought the latest.
David Ornstein provides Ruben Amorim latest
It was a fairly big surprise to hear that Liverpool have cooled any interest in Amorim. The 39-year-old’s name has been circling for a long time now.
However, Ornstein has always remained consistent in his reporting that the Reds had not yet settled on the Sporting boss.
Speaking to The Athletic’s Daily Football Briefing podcast on Tuesday morning, the journalist reiterated that view. Although Amorim has been ‘in the conversation’ for Liverpool, he is now ‘unlikely’ to join.
“My information is that a move by Liverpool for Amorim is now regarded as unlikely,” says Ornstein. “That will come as a surprise to many who thought that he might have been nailed on because of the reports that have emerged, particularly in Portugal, but those reports were not replicated over here.
“Our information has always been that yes, Ruben Amorim is in the conversation for Liverpool, but he’s not a shoo-in. They are running a thorough and methodical process that is considering a number of candidates to fit what they want in terms of the profile and the key criteria.
“They won’t be afraid to be brave and bold in their own decision. It might not be a populist choice right now. It would seem that that might not be Amorim. In terms of whether it will be West Ham, we just cannot say at this point in time. But certainly, it’s a development that not many people saw coming.”
What next for Liverpool
At this point, it’s perhaps best if Liverpool supporters stopped trying to second-guess FSG here. With Michael Edwards at the helm, we should just now expect the unexpected.
Quite what that could look like though really is difficult to see. Could the Reds hire someone with no experience in a Mikel Arteta style appointment?
Could they put someone in for a short-term measure and try again for Alonso in a year?
Maybe they’ll rely on the data completely and bring in a manager who few people will have heard of in England?
We just don’t know. And although it seems that Amorim may still be on the list somewhere, he’s certainly not at the top of it. The intrigue goes on.