Andoni Iraola speaks in his first press conference as Liverpool’s new head coach as preparations continue for the 2026/27 season.
The 44 year old, who on the 4th of June, signed on a two-year deal, replacing Arne Slot, guided Bournemouth to Europa League qualification with a 37% win rate, with Liverpool impressed by what he has done.
The hope is to improve on Liverpool’s dismal 5th place finish with his high pressing, being ultra direct, with more risk on the ball.
Now, talking with media for the first time with 41 days until the 26/27 season gets underway, he opens up on himself, taking on the role, challenge he faces, plans for the squad, the style, the summer transfer window, the future of Harvey Elliott, Virgil van Dijk and Alisson plus much more.
Question: What are you hoping to produce here at Liverpool?
Andoni: It’s a great question for the first one. I would like to give them a team that they can feel proud of. I think football, and especially Liverpool for me, is about connecting with the people, connecting with our supporters. I’ve been on the other side at Anfield. I’ve experienced, I always say, the goal that Chiesa scored in the first game of the past season, where you can feel the stadium and I would love to have this every game we play. And it has to come from us, from inside the pitch. And we have to be a team that we know works hard, intensely, aggressively, vertically, so everyone can be identified, everyone can feel comfortable supporting this team.
Question: In terms of that then as well, do feel the squad needs in terms of reinforcements?
Andoni: Yeah, obviously we’ve signed two players already but we need more players, we know this. The club is working on this. Me as a coach selfishly, you want the players here on day one, ready to train from the pre-season. But we understand that football doesn’t work like this, and I know the club is working hard to get those signings and I’m obviously trying to help also.
Question: Just to gauge where the current group is at, what conversations have you had, I’m thinking have you with Slot about what happened last season? Also the likes of Virgil van Dijk, the likes of Alisson as well, have you spoken to them? Because they’re two players with just 12 months left on their contract.
Andoni: Yes, I’ve spoken especially with all the players that have been in the World Cup, especially the ones that have already been eliminated and are enjoying their holidays. I didn’t want to disturb them or bother them while the World Cup was ongoing, but I think it has been a very good conversation. I’m also using these couple of weeks I’ve had before we start properly the first team training to talk with a lot of people around that work every day here. And those are the ones that are helping me create, I think, a good environment where our players can perform and let’s say we can maximise their abilities.
Question: Just talking about that, do you Understand what it means to be Liverpool manager. You say you’ve spoken to people around the club. Do you understand what the job means?
Andoni: Yeah, I want to think I understand probably until you are not here and until I don’t go through certain experiences I will not fully know but I’m here to experience those situations. I’m ready for it. I understand that this is a massive club. Everything that I’m gonna say now is gonna go to big scrutiny. You have to be very aware of the mistakes. But I wouldn’t like to be too careful. You know, I would like to act quite normal. I’m not gonna live in my bubble, just training ground, home, I would also like to go to the city, experience the city. I know some places. I will have some pictures, so I will have to… But it’s also part of the magic of being the Liverpool manager. I would like not to change too much.
Question: You spoke about talking to some of the players. What’s your assessment of the squad you have inherited and have you had a chance to look at maybe last season and where things didn’t go right for you?
Andoni: Yes, obviously I talked to the players, I talked to the staff, I talked about the things that were working very well, things that we think we can do differently, I wouldn’t say better, differently. I think it’s different. I have the advantage that probably players already know what we are going to demand in terms of style of play, but we will have time to know each other. One thing is to know a player, to talk to a player, to ask him, where do you feel more comfortable, in this position, in this other one, where do you see yourself, because I’m making the players this question so I can understand them and I can, but after, I will see them train, I will make some tests during pre-season, will fill things and then I will take decisions from there.
Question: You’re trying to know the players, how much will the World Cup impact you as a new manager trying to learn about your new players when they’re going to come back? You’re a new manager with the new players, some of those players are going to come back later than others because of the World Cup. How does that make your job more difficult?
Andoni: I think it is what it is. We cannot change it. I think players deserve a break from the ones that have been in the World Cup. They deserve their three weeks so they can enjoy their time with with friends family, thinking other things even physically some of them they need a rest after a very busy season and I think I’m looking at the positives almost because I’ve had now one week to see every training from the under 21s, we’ve had some of the players from the first team willing to come a little bit before so they are already in a better shape to start, already today that they didn’t have to come, I’ve seen two or three that I haven’t seen before that they are already here ready for the testing tomorrow so I think this like progressive introduction also will allow me maybe to get more in touch with every player and also will give especially the young players some players that have been on loan more minutes during pre-season first part of preseason basically is gonna be with a lot of players from the academy, players that in other situations maybe I wouldn’t know as well. And now I will have the chance to get to know them personally, training every day with them, in some friendlies, and it’s going to be good information for me.
Question: Harvey Elliott’s returns, he had a strange season for him last season. It didn’t turn out how many anticipated. Do you see a situation where Harvey Elliott’s future is now at Liverpool again?
Andoni: Definitely Harvey is here with us. He has come also, I’ve seen him with this eagerness of showing himself and getting himself ready again. He will have a chance during the pre-season. We will need him, and it’s a good sign he came one week earlier, he’s been training with the under-21s and I hope we can see him in a good place, no? I think Harvey comes from, especially last season, had to be very difficult for him because it was a strange situation where basically they couldn’t even put him to play and I think he uses the bad situation he has experienced to make him even more eager to be a Liverpool player.
Question: You’ve mentioned the scrutiny that comes with being at Liverpool. Can you be the same coach as you always have been, or do you have to change now?
Andoni: I will try to be the same coach. I understand that I will maybe make mistakes here, I will say things that I shouldn’t. But you cannot be thinking all the time, subtly, don’t tell this, don’t… I think you have to be yourself and I will try to be. Obviously I cannot say everything here to you. There are some things that you have to keep private, but especially with the players. I know that we will have big personalities, big egos, but I will try not to change with them also.
Andoni Iraola speaks in his first interview on becoming Liverpool’s new head coach
Question: What kind of personality or character would you say you as a coach?
Andoni: The most difficult question probably, try to describe yourself. I don’t like to do this at all. I think you have the advantage that you’ve already seen three years at least in the Premier League. I think everyone kind of, some of them will know me better, the others maybe they don’t know me, but the people involved in football more or less, they will know what we are going to try to do. Obviously I understand that this is Liverpool, we have to change some things, we have to change a little bit, even tactically, even on the pitch, but if they sign me, it’s because they want a lot of things that I was doing before in other clubs. So I wouldn’t like to change on the pitch, the DNA of what have been my teams and also outside how I am going to answer your questions, how I’m going to relate to the supporters, how I’m going to think I will try to be as natural as possible and I hope it doesn’t change me a lot.
Question: There has been a lot of change this summer, seeing your players have left and maybe bit of change behind the scenes as well. Do you think going into next season, what are the expectations? Do you there has to be an element of patience and maybe a sense of transition? Or can you be thought of there as challenging right now?
Andoni: No, I think we have to accept there are difficult situations right now in terms of, I would say, both sides. A lot of senior players leaving, very important players that have achieved almost everything here in the club. And also some of the very important players were injured. You know, we haven’t started training and we already have special cases of Hugo Ekitike, Conor Bradley, Giovanni Leoni, long injuries. uh So in terms of also improving the team we have to consider. Okay, we have to replace very important players that were making very good numbers and also we have a situation with especially those three like big injuries that are gonna miss some time we also have to find a way to replace. We know that these three players, for example, are the long-term solutions, I’m sure. know, about Conor, about Giovanni, about Hugo. But there is going to be, especially in Hugo’s case, a period where we will be without them and we have to try to find solutions.
Question: I think you’ve spoken quite a bit about playing vertically, attacking fast, high press, overlapping etc. Those core principles, how important are for you, not just up and down in your career, but going forwards?
Andoni: Yes, I think they have to be our core principles. After we will have lot of games a lot of questions that you make me is no if you face low blocks and this I always say is okay I prefer to face low blocks in terms of okay, we will be in control of the games probably we will consider less chances we will spend a lot of time in opposition half and those are the scenarios that we have to find some things they give you straight away that situation perfect other things they don’t give it straight away because they will try also to control the game to play in your half I’m looking forward to spend as much time as we can in opposition half, with the ball, without the ball, because I feel we are closer to score than the opposition if it’s that situation.
Question: When the announcement happened last month, was a bit of talk about having a two-year deal. I understand that’s your preference. Could you delve a bit more into that and why you prefer that?
Andoni: Two-year deals, I always say, terms of coaching contracts, they don’t matter a lot. I don’t want to be in a place because I have a contract. We are not sure, but you have a contract, stay there. No, it’s like, OK, no I think I signed two years but it’s basically year to year. When you are a coach, we’ve seen a lot of managers that they have a long contract and because the club doesn’t want, because they don’t want, because at the end when you are a player it’s very important, I think the contract is very important, but when you are a manager I feel also if they sack you it’s going to be better because they will pay me a little bit more out if I haven’t worked also. If you are happy, I’m happy. Don’t worry, I hope I can stay here two years, a lot more years. It would mean that I’ve done a very good job. But I feel we have to earn. Managers, have to earn every year the right to continue, especially in clubs like Liverpool. But I do it everywhere. I’ve done it always like this.
Question: Last year Bournemouth played 40 games in all competitions, Liverpool played 57, in times of managing that extra work load and competing on all four fronts, playing that aggressive style you want to play how important is the size of the squad and being able to manage that, particularly if it’s first team players or players from the academy?
Andoni: Yes, think it’s a big challenge for me. I think it’s a big change because here most of the weeks are not going to be clean in terms of we will have a midweek game. I think it’s also a great opportunity for the players because I always love to have these kind of seasons as a player. You basically don’t train a lot. You play, recover, play, recover. I think there is a chance to use more players also because it’s impossible to deal with this kind of season with 13, 14, 15 players, you need all the squad and there are positives on this but also we have to get ready because in this kind of hard season a lot of games, injuries will happen, situations will happen, so we have to get ready in terms of squad depth so we can deal with the demands of the competition and we can go through those months, especially here in England, December, January, February, you know those months are really hard and we have to arrive to those months in a situation where we can deal with them.
Andoni Iraola watches his best Bournemouth moments and shares farewell message to fans
