17 Aug 2026 10:06:23
When Iraola first signed, I remember an interview where he spoke about being brought up to play a style that resembled that amazing Spain team that won the World Cup and 2 Euros. They just compacted the midfield with ball playing skilful midfielders and didn’t really rely on wide play. If he does go down that route then we arnt a million miles off a decent starting 11. If the fitness can get back to where it was under Klopp then I see Grav going back in that 6 and doing a job but also with Nyoni as comp. With VVD, Jaquet and Araujo, we have a reliable defence and the sooner Leoni is back we’re even stronger. Fullback are a bit of a worry but we can only compare to a season where the players clearly were not happy with training and setup, have to have faith that Iraola can get the best out of Kerkez and Frimpong/Bradley.
I agree personally with a previous comment that Wirtz ends up being pushed forward to a point he could start ahead of Isak.
I don’t see the Spanish style (which surely we will be getting) suit Isak and we end up looking at that as a bad choice of signing. However if Barcola signs we could see him more central. So midfield is really where our dominance needs to pay off. Links to Barcola hopefully come off. So I think throughout we are solid enough to get half a season under AI and see what he can get from this lot. We all crave additions and instant success but I also think we have to be patient if we want the style to work and last. Having said that the bench is very weak so that needs bolstering haha! Anyway that’s just my thoughts. I do feel confident with what we have if we can just add Barcola for now. Shame Leoni and Ekitike army got to start that’s all.
17 Aug 2026 10:40:51
He has a more direct way of playing with strong wing play (hence our links with the PSG lads). Not a proponent of tiki-taka football.
17 Aug 2026 10:49:54
Good post that @Sobo. Makes a lot of sense to me.