On the eve of Liverpool’s meeting with LASK, manager Andoni Iraola was repeatedly asked about the fortunes of Florian Wirtz and Bradley Barcola.
Given their price tags, the pressure was on both to start delivering after stuttering starts to their individual campaigns. Iraola, as most managers would, stood by his players, insisting he trusted them “100%”.
Iraola insisted the focus was on the collective rather than individual stats but there is no denying that when you spend such eye-watering sums – £116m on Wirtz and £123m on Barcola – you want those players to be match-winners.
Wirtz delivered a fine display in the Austrian city of Linz as Liverpool won 6-3, with an assist to show for his efforts.
However, this was a night where the headlines belonged to Barcola, who on the 238th appearance of his career across clubs and country combined, scored his first hat-trick.
And it was those three goals which proved to be the difference as Liverpool returned to winning ways after their 3-0 loss to Manchester City on Sunday.
In truth, the 24-year-old could have scored more such was his quality, but he did enough to take the match ball home after two fine finishes with his right foot and left foot, followed by a tap in after the break.
And a little over 24 hours after defending his players against those pre-match questions, Iraola was speaking with a smile on his face.
“I’m really happy for Bradley,” Iraola said.
“You were asking me yesterday about him not making the numbers and [the same with] Florian and I think both of them today played really, really well. I think they made a difference.
“Bradley was a threat, always when one-on-one [and] certainly in behind. He helped us a lot to control the game, finding the pockets. I am and happy for both of them.
“I think for their confidence it’s very good. I think they feel now that we trust them a lot. I think it’s going to be very good, very good for them.”
On what it could mean for Barcola, Iraola added: “I think he has to enjoy this [as] to score a hat-trick in the Champions League is always very difficult.
“Even yesterday in training, I could feel he was very lively. Sometimes you feel these things [are going to happen]. We were feeling he was in a good place going into the game.”
Barcola will now hope to show that level in the Premier League, starting with a visit to Brentford on Saturday.
