Liverpool's New Era Under Andoni Iraola Takes Shape
Liverpool’s new era under Andoni Iraola is starting to take shape, and on the AXA Training Centre pitches on Thursday, it finally looked like a proper Premier League squad again.
With just two friendlies left — both against Italian side Como at Anfield on Sunday — the intensity has clearly gone up a notch. Newcastle away on the opening day is only 11 days out. The countdown has started.
Araujo steps straight in
All eyes were on Ronald Araujo.
Liverpool’s new centre-back, fresh from his move from Barcelona, was straight into the thick of the session. No easing in, no gentle introduction. Having already gone through pre-season work with the Catalan club, he arrived with a sharpness that Iraola will badly need.
He looked comfortable in the drills, already slotting into defensive patterns alongside his new teammates. The expectation is simple: he should get his first unofficial minutes in red against Como, likely next to Virgil van Dijk, and then push to start at St James’ Park a week later.
He’s still learning the environment, still adjusting to new voices and new demands, but this is not a raw project. Araujo brings experience and authority. For a new manager trying to install a fresh defensive structure on a tight schedule, that matters.
Jacquet back on the grass
There was another welcome sight at the back.
Jeremy Jacquet, who has yet to feature in any of Liverpool’s pre-season matches, took part in the outdoor session. It was a significant step for the French defender, who had been edging closer to a return during the US tour without quite making it.
Iraola said last weekend that Jacquet could be involved against Como. That remains the clear target. Get him minutes, get him rhythm, and suddenly the centre-back options look a little healthier.
Not everyone is there yet. Giovanni Leoni and Stefan Bajcetic watched on from the side, working on exercise bikes as the main group trained. Both remain some way off a full return and could be missing for a few more weeks. Their absence keeps certain areas of the squad stretched, even as others fill out.
Curtis Jones back in the mix
Further forward, there was good news in midfield.
Curtis Jones, who sat out the Anfield defeat to AS Monaco with a minor issue, was back involved in the session and moving freely. That should put him in contention to feature against Como, a timely boost for Iraola as he tries to lock in his midfield structure before the real stuff begins.
Jones’ future still hovers in the background. Inter Milan remain interested, but the Serie A side has yet to put forward an offer Liverpool consider acceptable. Iraola has already made his stance public: he wants the 25-year-old to stay. The complication is the clock. Jones’ contract runs out next summer, and every passing day adds a little more tension to the situation.
For now, though, he’s on the grass, in the plans, and part of a midfield unit that still needs refining.
Iraola’s tight window
Alexis Mac Allister’s return from his post-World Cup holiday means Iraola finally has close to a full group to work with, injuries aside. That’s crucial. The new head coach has a short, precious window to drill his ideas with full training weeks before the calendar turns brutal.
Liverpool still has business to do in the transfer market, and the squad is not yet the finished article. But that’s true across the division. Even Manchester City are adjusting to a change in the dugout. Nobody is fully settled.
For Iraola, these days at Kirkby are his real pre-season friendlies — the place where partnerships are built, pressing triggers are set, and roles are clarified before the games start coming twice a week after the first international break.
Two matches against Como. Eleven days to Newcastle. A new centre-back bedding in, a key midfielder back on the pitch, and a manager racing against time.
The work has started. Now it has to stick.
