Liverpool may have ended pre-season with a 2-0 victory over Como, but Andoni Iraola isn’t pretending everything is perfect.
In fact, the Liverpool head coach has identified exactly what still needs to improve before the Premier League opener against Newcastle.
Speaking after the victory at Anfield, Iraola admitted that Liverpool’s fitness levels are moving in the right direction, but he wants his players to be even better next week.
“I think we are better than we were last week. Still, I hope next week we are better than we were today.”
That’s an important message.
The second-half drop-off is still a concern
One thing we’ve seen repeatedly during pre-season is Liverpool looking significantly better in the first half before the intensity drops after the interval.
Iraola acknowledged exactly that.
He said the first halves are still better than the second halves and admitted that Liverpool need to improve particularly after half-time.
We saw it against Como.
Liverpool were excellent during the opening 45 minutes.
The pressing was aggressive.
The passing was quick.
The movement was exciting.
But Como grew into the game after the break and Liverpool had to defend for longer periods.
That’s something Iraola clearly wants to eradicate.
Fitness is improving
There is, however, plenty of encouragement.
A number of Liverpool players managed 80 or 90 minutes against Como without suffering cramps or any major problems.
That’s exactly what Iraola needs at this stage.
His football demands enormous physical effort.
Liverpool need players capable of pressing, recovering their positions and making repeated high-intensity runs throughout a match.
Iraola believes they’re getting there.
But he doesn’t want the players simply to be fit.
He wants them to be able to think clearly when they’re tired.
It’s not just physical fitness
This was perhaps the most interesting part of Iraola’s comments.
He spoke about maintaining the mentality and concentration even when players aren’t feeling fresh.
That’s absolutely vital.
When you’re tired, that’s when mistakes happen.
A defender switches off.
A midfielder gives the ball away.
A winger doesn’t track his runner.
A team loses its shape.
Iraola wants Liverpool to maintain their focus even when their legs are getting heavy.
That’s something that will come with time and repetition.
Liverpool have two or three weeks of training
The good news is that Liverpool now have time to work on it.
Iraola highlighted the importance of training together and building relationships between players.
That’s particularly important with so many new faces in the squad.
Wirtz.
Isak.
Jacquet.
Araújo.
Kerkez.
And others are still learning exactly what Iraola wants from them.
The manager believes the coming training period will allow Liverpool to improve their understanding and become better at solving problems on the pitch.
This is exactly what I want to hear
Personally, I find Iraola’s comments encouraging.
I’d be more concerned if he watched Liverpool’s 2-0 win and claimed everything was perfect.
It wasn’t.
Liverpool looked much better against Como, but there were still periods when the intensity dropped and the team became more vulnerable.
Iraola knows it.
And more importantly, he knows how he wants to fix it.
The fitness will improve.
The players will become more accustomed to his demands.
The relationships will develop.
And hopefully the second-half drop-offs will gradually disappear.
The real test starts next week
Pre-season is over.
The excuses disappear.
Newcastle away is the first real test of Iraola-ball.
And the manager has already made his expectations clear:
Liverpool need to be better next week than they were against Como.
That’s exactly the mentality I want from our new manager.
Jamie (The Kopite View)
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