Andoni Iraola has been confirmed as Liverpool's new head coach on a two-year contract, replacing the sacked Arne Slot. The 43-year-old Spaniard, who led Bournemouth to their best-ever Premier League finish of sixth place and Europa League qualification, said he is ready for the challenge at a club he described as "one of the biggest in the world".
Iraola recalled the moment Federico Chiesa scored a late winner for Liverpool against his Bournemouth side last August. "The place erupted. It was crazy, no?" he said. "I want now to feel this from the other side."
“Andoni Iraola signs two-year deal to replace sacked Arne Slot as Liverpool head coach.”
The decision to dismiss Slot was made by Fenway Sports Group's chief executive of football Michael Edwards and Liverpool's sporting director Richard Hughes, who concluded the club needed a more front-foot, aggressive and urgent style after finishing 25 points behind Premier League winners Arsenal with 60 points – their lowest tally since 2015-16. Slot had been sacked on Saturday, a year after guiding Liverpool to the title.
Iraola, who won seven caps for Spain during a playing career mostly at Athletic Club, will inherit a squad with eight current first-team players at the World Cup. He plans to integrate them carefully once they return. "Yes, there was already a lot of work done even before we arrived, and we are trying to change as little as possible for the beginning," he said. "Obviously there will be different timetables, some of them depending how far they arrive with the national teams, they will incorporate later or sooner."
He emphasised the importance of speaking to the existing staff first. "For me right now, I think it's more than talk to the players. Some of them will be on deserved holidays, some of them will be with their national teams. I want to talk to the staff, to the people that were here every day, that know very well the players, to arrive as ready as possible to that first day of pre-season."
Iraola is understood to be keen to add his Bournemouth assistants Tommy Elphick and Shaun Cooper to his coaching staff. He acknowledged the need to prove himself quickly. "At the beginning when you arrive at any club, I think you need to kind of prove a little bit yourself. You need to earn the right also to belong. I want to do this as quickly as possible so I can also celebrate with them and I can be part properly of those celebrations."
Liverpool have qualified for next season's Champions League despite their lowest point total in a decade. Iraola, who announced in April he would leave Bournemouth this summer, had also been linked with Crystal Palace and AC Milan before accepting the challenge on Merseyside.