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LinkedIn/Laurie Shaw

In a move being compared to high-profile player transfers, Liverpool Football Club has made a strategic masterstroke by appointing Dr?

Laurie Shaw as their new Chief Scientist,

The Reds pulled of a coup by persuading the former Manchester City Director of Football Data to bring his talent to the Merseyside club.

The 42-year-old astrophysicist-turned-football-analyst will report directly to Director of Research Will Spearman, forming part of Liverpool’s revamped analytics department under FSG’s football CEO Michael Edwards

The Scot will officially assume his role this month after completing gardening leave from City Football Group, where he oversaw data operations for 11 clubs across four continents as Director of Football Data since September 2023.

Credits: LinkedIn/Laurie Shaw

His appointment continues Liverpool’s tradition of recruiting elite scientific minds, following in the footsteps of predecessors like Ian Graham (PhD in theoretical physics) and current research director Will Spearman (PhD in particle physics from Harvard).

Manchester City had initially hired Shaw in 2021 as Head of Football AI as part of a £20 million investment to close the analytics gap with Liverpool.

His defection to Anfield after helping build City’s data infrastructure is being hailed as coup by those within the industry.

So much so that that Professor David Sumpter, a well-known figure in the industry of football analytics and a co-founder of Twelve Football, believes that the acquisition can be compared to the likes of Erling Haaland deciding to join Liverpool:

“It’s difficult because I don’t normally exaggerate things, but you can’t get bigger than this in the world of football analytics,” he said in an exclusive interview with Redmen TV.

“It’s like if Haaland decided he was going to play for Liverpool, it’s that type of move,” Sumpter explained.

“Basically, you’ve got sort of a few big giants in football analytics, the people who’ve really changed and formed the field… and Will Spearman, who you’ve already got, and Laurie Shaw is coming over.”

“You’ve got basically two of the biggest possible names ‘playing’ for your team.”

“The transfer window hasn’t even opened, and you’ve already made the biggest of the season – it’s just crazy actually!”

It’s certainly a glowing account from someone who seems to suggest that the data analytics world in football is quite small – and Liverpool now have the two best ‘players’ in Spearman and Shaw.

The Shaw appointment coincides with Liverpool’s most significant analytics department expansion since Michael Edwards’ return as FSG’s football CEO.

The club has recently advertised for a Performance Insights Lead, Lead Data Scientist, and Junior Data Analyst – with Ruairidh McGregor (formerly of UK Athletics) already joining as Performance Insights Lead Engineer.

You can see the full interview HERE.

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