There is a question that Liverpool supporters need to start asking.
Are the club’s hierarchy putting Andoni Iraola in a position where he cannot succeed?
I don’t mean that Iraola is above criticism.
He isn’t.
Liverpool’s performances need to improve, and the new manager will ultimately be judged on results.
But there is a difference between holding a manager accountable and giving him a squad that makes his job unnecessarily difficult.
And right now, I’m starting to worry that Liverpool’s hierarchy are doing exactly that.
Iraola has been given a huge job
Replacing Arne Slot was never going to be easy.
Liverpool are expected to compete for the Premier League, Champions League and domestic trophies.
The expectations haven’t changed simply because the manager has.
Iraola has also inherited a squad that is being asked to adapt to a different style of football.
He wants intensity.
He wants pressing.
He wants his team to move together.
He wants players capable of covering huge amounts of ground.
That requires depth.
Especially when you’re competing on four fronts.
But Liverpool’s squad looks too thin
This is where the frustration comes from.
Liverpool have already lost Curtis Jones.
Stefan Bajcetic could also leave.
There are questions over the futures of other fringe players.
And despite all of this, the club appear reluctant to strengthen certain areas.
The most obvious example is midfield.
Liverpool’s supporters have been crying out for greater defensive security.
Yet the club reportedly don’t believe a specialist No.6 is necessary.
Instead, they believe Iraola’s system can compensate through collective pressing and movement.
Maybe they’re right.
But if they’re wrong, it’s Iraola who will take the blame.
The manager can’t control the transfer budget
This is the part that needs to be remembered.
Iraola didn’t build this squad.
He didn’t decide which players left.
He didn’t decide which positions were strengthened.
And he certainly didn’t decide how much the club were willing to spend.
His job is to get the best possible performances from the players available to him.
But there’s a limit to what any manager can do.
You can’t coach depth into existence.
You can’t prevent injuries.
You can’t make a player who isn’t a natural No.6 suddenly become Fabinho.
And you can’t expect youngsters to carry a four-competition campaign.
Newcastle exposed the problem
Liverpool’s 2-2 draw at Newcastle should have been a warning.
The Reds had 60% possession and 27 attempts, yet they still looked vulnerable whenever Newcastle counter-attacked.
Liverpool could control the ball without controlling the game.
That’s a problem.
The midfield sometimes looked too attacking.
The full-backs were vulnerable.
And Alexander Isak was isolated despite Liverpool having so much possession.
Iraola will have to find solutions.
But he also needs the tools to implement those solutions.
The winger obsession worries me
Liverpool have spent a huge amount of attention on strengthening the wide areas.
Yankuba Minteh has been pursued.
Bradley Barcola has been a major target.
There’s nothing wrong with wanting explosive wingers.
In fact, I think Liverpool desperately need more pace.
But there has to be balance.
If you’re conceding too many goals and struggling defensively, you can’t simply keep adding attackers and hope the problem disappears.
Jamie Carragher made a similar point when he questioned Liverpool’s recruitment priorities.
At some point, someone has to ask:
Where is the defensive balance?
Spending money isn’t the same as building a squad
Liverpool have spent big.
That’s undeniable.
But transfer spending should be judged by what the squad needs, not simply by how much money has been spent.
You can spend £100m on an attacker and still have a squad with weaknesses.
And that’s what worries me.
Liverpool don’t necessarily need another superstar.
They need the right players.
A midfielder who can defend.
Full-back competition.
More pace.
More depth.
And players Iraola can trust when the schedule becomes relentless.
And who gets blamed if it goes wrong?
This is the biggest issue.
Imagine Liverpool struggle defensively this season.
Imagine the midfield continues to get exposed.
Imagine injuries hit.
Imagine the Reds fall short in the Premier League and Champions League.
Who gets the blame?
The manager.
That’s how football works.
Iraola will be questioned.
His tactics will be questioned.
His team selections will be questioned.
His substitutions will be questioned.
But the people who constructed the squad need to face scrutiny too.
Don’t make Iraola the scapegoat
This is my biggest fear.
Liverpool cannot give a manager an incomplete squad and then act surprised when he struggles to get the best from it.
If the hierarchy genuinely believes Iraola can compete for major trophies, then they need to back him properly.
Not necessarily by panic-buying.
Not by signing players for the sake of it.
But by identifying the weaknesses in the squad and fixing them.
Because right now, I’m not convinced they’ve done that.
Liverpool have ambitions bigger than this
Liverpool aren’t a club that should be hoping everything goes perfectly.
They should be preparing for things going wrong.
Someone will get injured.
Someone will be suspended.
Someone will lose form.
The schedule will become congested.
Young players will be needed.
That’s football.
The best squads are built for those moments.
And right now, Liverpool’s squad doesn’t look deep enough to comfortably absorb them.
Iraola deserves better
Iraola will have to improve Liverpool.
He’ll have to find solutions.
He’ll have to get the best out of Wirtz, Isak, Gakpo and the rest.
And if performances aren’t good enough, he deserves criticism.
But Liverpool’s hierarchy also have a responsibility.
Don’t give the manager a squad full of holes and then blame him when those holes become obvious.
I want Iraola to succeed.
I genuinely believe he can.
But he needs help.
Liverpool have already shown that they can spend huge money when they want to.
Now they need to show that they can build a squad capable of competing for everything.
Because if they don’t, the danger is that Iraola becomes the fall guy for problems that were never entirely his to solve.
And that would be incredibly unfair.
Jamie (The Kopite View)
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