Liverpool officially unveil Andoni Iraola as new manager
English Premier League (EPL) club Liverpool FC has officially unveiled Spanish tactician Andoni Iraola as new head coach of the club following the sacking of Dutch coach Arne Slot.
The club in a statement shared on its official website disclosed that Iraola was hired due to his work rate at Bournemouth which him qualify the club for Europe, coupled with an 18-match unbeaten run in the EPL.
“Iraola arrives after three impressive campaigns in the Premier League with AFC Bournemouth, leading them into Europe for the first time in their history with a sixth-placed finish in the table last month,” Liverpool wrote.
“Born in the Basque region of northern Spain, Iraola enjoyed a lengthy playing career, operating mainly as a right-back and making more than 500 appearances for Athletic Club in 12 seasons.
“He also won seven caps for Spain before moving to New York City FC between 2015 and 2016, prior to hanging up his boots.
“Iraola’s maiden steps into management came in the summer of 2018 when he took control of AEK Larnaca and helped them to win the Cypriot Super Cup.
“A spell at Spanish second-division side Mirandes preceded a switch to Rayo Vallecano in 2020, who he led to promotion to La Liga in his first term at the helm.
“Then, just three years later, the Premier League came calling and Iraola was appointed as Bournemouth boss.
“His work at the Cherries caught the eye, culminating in European qualification being achieved last term after a remarkable 18-match unbeaten run in the second half of the season sealed sixth place.
“Now Iraola joins Liverpool, where he will begin preparing the Reds for the forthcoming campaign.”
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While reacting to his appointment, the 43-year-old said that he is excited to have the opportunity coach a club like Liverpool which he considers as one of the biggest clubs in the world.
“Really excited, really excited. Because obviously you know about Liverpool, you know that it’s a big club, a massive club, one of the biggest in the world.
“But feeling inside and understanding a little bit more of this club, I always thought it’s a special club.
“You don’t need a lot of things to get attracted by Liverpool. Liverpool is Liverpool.
“But obviously the atmosphere, the supporters, the club, the players, the chance for me to coach top-level players, the chance to fight for titles. I think it cannot be more attractive than this. It’s difficult to find it. So, really excited to start.”
The underwhelming performance and failure to successfully defend their league title forced the club to sack Slot at the end of the campaign.
Liverpool’s recent season was widely considered a major disappointment, ending in a fifth-place Premier League finish and an overall record of 17 wins, 9 draws, and 12 losses.
The club in a statement shared on X confirmed Slot’s sacking and also revealed that a process to appoint a successor is underway.
