James Pearce has confirmed news of a notable departure from Liverpool on Monday evening.
The summer of 2025 saw the arrivals of several marquee players at Anfield in an unprecedented £446m shopping spree, and there was also a new (or, more accurately, returning) face behind the scenes as Xavi Valero was appointed as head of first-team goalkeeper coaching.
However, as reported by Pearce for The Athletic, the Spaniard has now stepped down from that role just over a year to the day since taking the job, having informed club chiefs before the end of last season about his desire to return to his homeland.
He won’t be part of Andoni Iraola’s backroom staff for the start of pre-season training in Kirkby bext week, and Liverpool are now ‘assessing the merits’ of numerous candidates as they seek to appoint a successor, with Colin Stewart (goalkeeper development and pathway lead) temporarily filling the void.
In a post on X in which he shared the corresponding article, Pearce outlined that Valero’s exit from Anfield was ‘amicable’.
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This latest news continues the theme of off-field comings and goings at Liverpool, the most significant of which was Iraola replacing Arne Slot as head coach.
Several of the backroom staff who worked under the Dutchman also departed their roles last month, with the club recently confirming the additions of Tommy Elphick, Shaun Cooper, Pablo de la Torre and Tom Webber to the coaching team under the new boss.
That Valero was seemingly seeking to go back to Spain for a few months and his exit was ‘amicable’ would suggest that it’s been in the works for some time and didn’t come as a nasty surprise to LFC chiefs, even though a full-time replacement hasn’t yet been lined up.
Maybe Iraola has a preferred candidate in mind to come in as head of first-team goalkeeper coaching – if so, hopefully a swift appointment can be made so that this important role is filled in the early stages of pre-season.
Everyone at Empire of the Kop thanks Valero for his work at Liverpool and wishes him well for the future.
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