Richard Hughes did $62M Liverpool deal with club that now wants to poach him
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Liverpool's sporting director Richard Hughes, who has been linked with a move to join Al-Hilal, has already done business with the Saudi Pro League side after he negotiated the sale of Darwin NunezLiverpool sporting director Richard Hughes is reportedly a target for (Image: Photo by Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)Liverpool's sporting director, Richard Hughes, has already done business with the Saudi Pro League side, Al-Hilal, with whom he has been heavily linked.The Saudi Arabian side has reportedly identified Hughes, who joined Liverpool in the summer of 2024 following Jurgen Klopp's departure, as one of its top three candidates for the role of sporting director at Al-Hilal. The 46-year-old has been heavily involved in the recruitment of players during the Arne Slot era,Last summer, he orchestrated a huge summer spending spree on Merseyside following Liverpool's Premier League title win, with the Reds paying record fees for Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak.
The Reds spent approximately £449 million ($599M) on transfer fees, bringing in Jeremie Frimpong, Hugo Ekitike, Milos Kerkez, and Giovanni Leoni alongside Wirtz and Isak.READ MORE: Thierry Henry shares bold Liverpool wish to question 'weird' Arsenal title stanceREAD MORE: Jurgen Klopp pursued for World Cup gig in America before major announcementHowever, the moves intended to herald an era of Premier League dominance on Merseyside have not entirely played out as planned, with Liverpool's title defense faltering in a disappointing campaign following last year's highs.In January, Hughes was linked with a switch to the Saudi Pro League. Those reports have now resurfaced months later, with it being reported that he is a target for Al-Hilal.Darwin Nunez joined Al-Hilal from Liverpool back in the summer.
While there has been no official approach from the Saudi Pro League side, Hughes previously negotiated with Al-Hilal over the sale of Darwin Nunez last summer.Nunez joined Al-Hilal for a fee of up to €75 million ($87M/£64M) back in August. However, he has since been frozen out following the arrival of Karim Benzema.The former Liverpool striker is not even registered to play in domestic league matches for Al-Hilal, with Nunez able to feature only in the Asian Champions League.Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes could be on the move(Image: Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images)There is no indication, however, that Nunez and Hughes, the man who sold him to Al-Hilal, could be reunited in the Middle East, especially with the former likely to want to leave the club after being frozen out.Currently, Al-Hilal sits second in the Saudi Pro League, three points behind Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr.If Richard Hughes does end up at Al-Hilal, could he sign Mohamed Salah?(Image: Alex Pantling - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)They are also, according to The Telegraph, interested in signing Mohamed Salah, alongside Al-Ittihad, who let Benzema leave to open up room in their squad for a new arrival.Should Hughes take the Al-Hilal sporting director job, it will be interesting to see whether he attempts to bring Salah with him to the Middle East, especially given his bust up earlier this season with Slot.