Liverpool's Centre-back Dilemma: Iraola's First Big Call
A new Liverpool era begins at St James’ Park this afternoon, and Andoni Iraola’s first big call could define the tone of his reign.
Everything hinges on one question: who stands next to Virgil van Dijk?
Centre-back dilemma for Iraola
With Joe Gomez ruled out after a pre-season injury and Giovanni Leoni already a long-term absentee, Iraola’s options are stripped back. It leaves just two senior contenders to partner the captain in central defence: Araujo and summer signing Jeremy Jacquet.
Both were given exactly 45 minutes in the final warm-up game against Como last weekend. Jacquet even marked his first Anfield outing with a goal just before half-time, a sharp reminder of his threat in both boxes.
But the picture is more complicated than a pre-season header.
Jacquet has wrestled with fitness all summer. His past six months have been disrupted by shoulder surgery at Rennes in February, limiting his game time and rhythm. Throwing him straight into one of the most hostile away grounds in the Premier League would be a bold move for day one.
Araujo, by contrast, knows what awaits. He has already felt the noise and intensity of St James’ Park and shown he can cope with it. For a manager looking to avoid unnecessary risk in his first league outing, that experience might be decisive.
A largely settled XI
Beyond that central defensive call, the rest of the Liverpool side almost selects itself.
Alisson will anchor the back line in goal. Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez are set to complete the back five, offering pace and width from full-back to support Iraola’s aggressive style.
In midfield, Ryan Gravenberch is expected to start alongside Dominik Szoboszlai. Trey Nyoni impressed across pre-season and has forced his way into the conversation, but this looks like a day for established names in the engine room.
Alexis Mac Allister is unlikely to be thrown in from the start. He has played just 54 minutes this summer after an extended post-World Cup break and is still building sharpness. Curtis Jones is no longer in the equation at all, having completed his move to Inter Milan.
New faces in attack, and a hostile homecoming
Out wide, Liverpool’s transfer work remains incomplete. Deals for Bradley Barcola or Ibrahim Mbaye have not been finalised, and talks continue over Yankuba Minteh. So the responsibility on the flanks should fall to Rio Ngumoha and Cody Gakpo, with Florian Wirtz operating in the No 10 role, pulling strings between the lines.
Victor Munoz will watch on with intent, hoping Iraola turns to him from the bench for a debut cameo.
Then there is the man leading the line.
Alexander Isak returns to St James’ Park for the first time since his British record £125 million move last summer. The fee alone guarantees noise. The manner of his departure from Newcastle ensures the reception will be even colder.
Isak walks back into a stadium that once adored him, now as the focal point of Iraola’s Liverpool. How he handles that hostility, and who stands beside van Dijk behind him, will say plenty about how this new era really begins.
