There is something I really like about Andoni Iraola.
While most Liverpool supporters are understandably frustrated that the season has been interrupted just as the team has started finding some momentum, Iraola is already thinking about how to use the time properly.
Liverpool’s players have headed off on international duty, but the Liverpool manager isn’t simply switching off.
Instead, he has already explained his plan for the international break — and it tells us a lot about the way Iraola wants to work.
“We will still train,” Iraola said after Sunday’s victory at Bournemouth.
The reality is that he will only have a small group of senior players available because most of the squad are away with their national teams. But after giving the remaining players some days off, Iraola intends to continue working with those who stay behind.
And then comes the really important part.
He wants to use the break to prepare the squad for what comes next.
Iraola knows what is coming
Liverpool return from the international break with Manchester City at Anfield.
And Iraola knows he may have only around three days with the returning international players before that enormous fixture.
That makes this period particularly important.
“We will prepare well for when the others come and you have no more than three days probably to prepare for the City game,” Iraola explained.
But he isn’t looking at the Manchester City game in isolation.
He immediately talked about the demanding run of fixtures that follows.
That’s something I think is important.
Iraola isn’t just preparing for one game. He’s preparing Liverpool for a period that could define the next stage of the season.
This is where the manager earns his money
There will be people who look at an international break and think there isn’t much a club manager can actually do.
Most of the players aren’t there.
Training numbers are reduced.
You can’t properly work on everything you want to work on.
But there are still things a manager can do.
Iraola can work with the players who remain.
He can analyse Liverpool’s opening matches.
He can study opponents.
He can work with his coaching staff on tactical adjustments.
He can look at the players returning from injury.
Giovanni Leoni and Federico Chiesa were expected to return to squad training around this international break, while Joe Gomez has already returned to training.
And perhaps most importantly, Iraola can think.
He can step back from the relentless cycle of preparing for the next match and look at the bigger picture.
Where is Liverpool’s structure working?
Where isn’t it?
How can Wirtz become more influential?
How can Liverpool get more from Isak?
Which midfield combination gives the team the right balance?
How can the defence continue to improve?
These are the questions that can be worked on away from matchday pressure.
And this is different from what we saw under Slot
This is where I think Liverpool supporters are entitled to notice a difference.
Arne Slot was not a manager who simply stopped working whenever there was an international break. There was clearly work happening behind the scenes, and Slot himself spoke about analysis, planning and maintaining contact with staff during periods away from the training ground.
But he also openly enjoyed taking holidays.
When he was first appointed by Liverpool, Slot spoke about being “energised” by a holiday and acknowledged that he had gone away before beginning his new job properly.
And during his Liverpool tenure, there was also considerable attention around his decision to spend part of an international break in Dubai while many of his players were away with their countries.
There is nothing inherently wrong with a manager taking a break.
Managers are human beings and, just like players, need rest.
But there is something refreshing about hearing Iraola immediately talk about work.
He’s talking about training.
He’s talking about the players who remain.
He’s talking about preparing for the players’ return.
He’s talking about Manchester City.
And he’s talking about the demanding run that follows.
For a new manager still learning his squad, that feels encouraging.
Iraola has plenty to work on
Let’s be honest — Liverpool aren’t the finished article.
Far from it.
There have been impressive moments.
The Champions League win over Atlético Madrid.
The 3-1 Carabao Cup victory over Tottenham.
The 1-0 victory at Bournemouth.
Three consecutive Premier League clean sheets.
But there have also been draws and performances where Liverpool’s attacking football hasn’t quite clicked.
Wirtz is still searching for consistency.
The midfield balance is still being worked out.
Liverpool’s attack has not yet reached the level many supporters expect.
And Iraola is still learning exactly what his players can give him.
That makes this break potentially very valuable.
It isn’t about working harder than everyone else
This isn’t about saying Iraola is a better manager simply because he isn’t going on holiday.
That’s too simplistic.
Managers need rest.
Slot won the Premier League in his first season at Liverpool, so nobody can seriously claim that taking breaks meant he wasn’t capable of doing his job.
But there is a difference in perception and approach.
Iraola has arrived at Liverpool with an enormous amount to learn.
He has inherited a hugely expensive squad.
He has new players to integrate.
He has young players pushing for opportunities.
He has injuries to manage.
And he has a style of football he wants to establish.
So hearing him immediately talk about using every available opportunity to work with the players is something I find encouraging.
And the timing could be perfect
Liverpool have just beaten Bournemouth 1-0.
It wasn’t their most spectacular performance, but it was another clean sheet and another example of Iraola’s team finding a way to win.
Now he gets time.
Not with the full squad, unfortunately.
But enough time to analyse.
Enough time to work.
Enough time to plan.
And then the internationals return.
Manchester City arrive at Anfield.
And after that, the fixtures come thick and fast.
Iraola knows exactly what is waiting for him.
He’s not pretending Liverpool are finished. He’s already preparing for the next challenge.
That’s what I want to see from this Liverpool manager.
Not simply reacting to what happened last weekend.
Not simply thinking about Manchester City.
But constantly thinking about how to make Liverpool better.
And if Iraola can use this international break to make even a few small improvements, Liverpool could return with something every manager wants but rarely gets in the middle of a season:
time to work.
Jamie (The Kopite View)
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