Liverpool was literally my dream job although it turned into a nightmare at various points

Former Liverpool data guru Ian Graham has revealed he snubbed interest from other Premier League clubs - as he had 'zero motivation' to work for a rival of the club he supported.

Arriving in 2012 from Decision Technology, Graham spent 11 years at the Reds as he served as director of research. He was a key member of the recruitment team that propelled Liverpool back to the European elite under manager Jurgen Klopp.

Working closely alongside much-vaunted ex-sporting director Michael Edwards, the likes of Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk, Alisson Becker, Andy Robertson and Sadio Mane were recruited. The Reds would win six major trophies - including the Champions League in 2019 and the Premier League title a year later.

However, Graham left Anfield in May and has since created a consultancy firm with Edwards named Ludonautics. Speaking to ESPN, Graham admitted he was coveted by other suitors. And despite conceding it was a 'nightmare' working for Liverpool at times, it was also his dream role.

Graham said: "I got approached by a couple of Premier League teams about repeating the trick that we did at Liverpool. Liverpool was the club I supported. So, it was literally my dream job, although it turned into a nightmare at various points. Overall, it was my dream job. And so, I had zero motivation to just do the same thing again. Just changing the colour of the shirts, that's not enough of a change for me.

"We had owners that were deeply invested in a data-driven approach, which isn't the case at other teams," Graham said. "And I learned from experience: You need that investment from the top, otherwise it's just not going to work. I also had the privilege working for a sporting director who is also heavily invested in data.

"So even if the owners are invested, that doesn't mean that people actually making the sporting decisions are invested. So, it was very good for my ego to discuss the possibility of me joining different clubs, but none of the projects offered anything that was of any interest for me. It was just: 'Can you do the same as you did at Liverpool?'"

Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group take a data-driven approach towards transfers to maximise the return on investment. John Henry and Co. run the Reds on a self-sustainable business so risk-taking is often tempered. Graham could understand that but admitted it could be 'boring'.

He added: "A lot of the decisions we had to make at Liverpool were quite boring, and it would've been much more fun to do something else to sign players like Chelsea signed players, for example.

"The American investment seems more focused on 'what's our return on investment?' -- or not even 'what's our return on investment?' FSG were always happy to invest into the club, but the club had to live within its means in the way that a Middle East money-backed club doesn't."