Andoni Iraola demands more new signings

Andoni Iraola faced the media for the first time as Liverpool head coach on Monday morning, wasting no time in outlining his demands for the summer transfer window.

The 44-year-old manager, who succeeded the sacked Arne Slot in June, acknowledged that the club faces a massive rebuilding job after a disappointing fifth-place finish last season.

The Basque boss was quite candid about the current state of his squad, explicitly stating that while two players have arrived, many more reinforcements are required to make the team fully competitive.

“Obviously we’ve signed two players already but we need more players, we know this,” he said. “The club is working on this.

“Me as a coach, selfishly, you want the players here day one, ready to train from the pre-season, but we understand that football doesn’t work like this. I know the club is working hard to get those signings and I’m trying obviously to help also.”

The club has already finalised deals for 21-year-old French central defender Jeremy Jacquet from Rennes and 23-year-old Spanish winger Victor Munoz from Osasuna.

However, the squad has been heavily depleted by the high-profile departures of Mohamed Salah, Andy Robertson, and Ibrahima Konate, who all walked away on free transfers at the end of their contracts.

Iraola admitted that he would selfishly prefer to have all new signings available from day one of pre-season, but he knows that football negotiations rarely operate in such an ideal manner.

He also highlighted the immediate challenge of managing without several key individuals due to long-term injuries, noting that Conor Bradley, Hugo Ekitike, and Giovanni Leoni are all facing extended spells on the sidelines.

“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 injured.

“You know, we haven’t started training and we already have, especially in the cases of Hugo Ekitike, Conor Bradley, Giovanni Leoni, long injuries.

“So, in terms of also improving the team we have to consider we have to replace very important players that were making very good numbers, and also we have the situation with, especially those three, big injuries that are going to miss some time that we also have to find a way to replace.

“We know that these three players, for example, I love them, they are the long-term solutions, I’m sure. You 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 also.”

Having successfully guided Bournemouth to sixth place in the Premier League last year playing a high-pressing, progressive style of football, the Spaniard emphasized that he must adapt his demanding methods to handle a gruelling schedule that will include frequent midweek fixtures.