They do things differently in the Basque Country, especially in Bilbao at Athletic Club. Not too differently, mind, to Liverpool.
An unwavering, indefatigable sense of identity. An us-against-them mentality, two fingers to the establishment. A philosophy that extends to football, with a belief in promoting youth and prioritising the collective over any one ego or individual.
It is for this reason that Liverpool and new head coach Andoni Iraola believe they have found the perfect marriage.
This feeling of worth is a topic that repeatedly surfaces during a lengthy chat with the man tasked with leading Liverpool back to glory, in his first sit-down interview since taking over from the sacked Arne Slot.
‘People ask me a lot why a lot of Basque managers especially have arrived to this level and why a lot of Spanish teams are winning a lot of things,’ says Iraola, in an Apprentice-style boardroom at a high-rise, swanky hotel in downtown Chicago.
‘I always say that a sense of collectiveness is very important. Spain has never had the best athletes. If you analyse, in swimming, track and field, they don’t normally win medals.
Andoni Iraola is in his second month in charge of Liverpool as he looks to reinvigorate the Reds
The 44-year-old’s football identity comes from his home in the Basque Country, Spain, where he spent over a decade at Athletic Bilbao as a player
‘But in collective sports they are very good. In football, basketball, handball, hockey…. normally they have good teams. We always put the team first.
‘An example is someone like Rodri. He didn’t score or make an assist but at the end they won the World Cup and he won best player of the tournament. “Team first” was always integrated in how we’re raised.’
It is pertinent because Spain were crowned world champions less than 48 hours before our chat. Through the tinted glass behind Iraola sits a group of well-to-do individuals sipping on Margaritas and Aperol Spritz, dining on small plates.
Iraola sticks to the black coffee for now. He was up at 4am due to jet-lag and perhaps a sense of nerves ahead of his first pre-season tour.
Spain also won the Euros. The Premier League winning manager? San Sebastian-born Mikel Arteta. Champions League? Gijon-born Luis Enrique, twice in a row. Both English domestic cups? Barcelona-born Pep Guardiola. Europa League? Unai Emery, another Basque.
Basque, Spanish, Catalan, they are the kings of football. And queens – the Spaniards are the reigning Women’s World Cup champions, too.
Liverpool and Chelsea have both appointed Basques in Iraola and his old mate Xabi Alonso, while Fulham have also gone for a Spaniard in Alvaro Arbeloa. It’s the biggest Spanish invasion since the conquistadors of the Aztec and Inca empires.
Iraola adds: ‘There has to be something in society. It cannot only just be about football. Things work when we are not just selfish, no? When, in the end, you prioritise the situation of the one who has less. That happens also in football.
‘The ones that don’t play, the ones who come from the academy, the ones who earn less. It could be a reference, you can compare it with society.
‘I see a lot of things (similar to Liverpool). This sense of belonging, of being a little bit different. This connection, also, with players from the academy. The atmosphere of Anfield.
‘This is one of the biggest clubs in the world and, in some way, the comparison to Athletic Club probably isn’t fair. But in a lot of ways I see a lot of things similar.’
There are now a number of Basque managers such as Mikel Arteta (left) and Xabi Alonso (right) in the Premier League
By the end of the Slot era, the Dutchman was criticised for pretty much everything. The fans had seen enough. The methods he was heralded as being a genius for 12 months earlier were now reasons for him to be sacked, in the eyes of many. It turned sour, nasty and toxic.
One stick to beat him with was how he did not immerse himself in the culture of the city. Iraola has already done that. A fan of the Christmas markets when he visited as a tourist several years ago, the former Bournemouth boss wants to experience all the cultural sites.
Iraola skipped going on holiday this summer – save for a brief trip back to Bilbao – to focus on finding a house and schools for his two kids. When asked what he enjoys doing in his spare time, Iraola gave a deadpan response: ‘I have two kids.’
So that’s that, then. Football and full-time fatherhood. He does make time, though, for his other great hobby: cycling. He unwinds by watching the Tour de France and is fascinated by the discipline – physical and mental – of top-level cyclists.
He loved the New Forest and other routes Dorset had to offer during his three seasons at Bournemouth, nearly as much as his homeland.
Iraola has already been given a few recommendations for bike rides in Merseyside and believes the helmet and wind-mask will help conceal his identity.
Another stick to beat Slot was his stubborn backing of struggling players and his reluctance to promote youth (though he did play an integral part in the rise of 17-year-old sensation Rio Ngumoha).
Iraola, back on the topic of Bilbao, is a huge believer in promoting from within. At Athletic Club, the name anglicised as it was founded by British workers, he had no choice. Their famed La Cantera policy insists every player has to have Basque heritage.
‘It is a very special club,’ says Iraola, believing his roots there have served him well now. ‘At Athletic Club, you have to maximise every player you have in the squad. You cannot sell him and choose another one a lot of times.
‘As a player, you have to give extra. The only way that policy can be successful is if you give 100 per cent. This creates a connection and you see they win things, they have never been relegated.’
Iraola’s biggest inspiration is Athletic Bilbao and former Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde
Iraola played 510 times for them, captaining them to a Europa League final under Marcelo Bielsa. He watched from afar in 2024 when players ditched a traditional bus parade to sail down the Nervion, banks filled by millions, on a barge with the Copa del Rey, a first trophy since 1984.
The manager of that triumph was the man who left the biggest impression on Iraola: Ernesto Valverde. The two-time La Liga winner with Barcelona, who managed Athletic three times, was on Liverpool’s list to replace Jurgen Klopp due to his playing style.
‘I had very good managers as a player,’ explains Iraola when asked about his coaching idols. ‘If I have to choose one I always say Ernesto Valverde.
‘I had him when I was in the academy and he was the one who gave me the chance to play in the first team. I also had him towards the end of my Athletic Club career. I learned a lot from him. Everyone asks me about Marcelo Bielsa.
‘I also had some games with the national team with Vicente del Bosque (World Cup winner in 2010 and Euros in 2012).
‘They were good managers. Even at the end of my career, playing for Patrick Vieira after I signed for New York City, gave me a different perspective. But if I have to pick one, then it’s Valverde.
‘It was his common sense. He never made problems bigger than they were. He always understood the players. He was very firm with the things he believed in. But how he treated the players, both those who were playing and those who weren’t, I liked it a lot.’
Iraola knows he has a sizable task on his hand, especially after the cloud of negativity that lingered over last season where Champions League qualification was only achieved on the final weekend.
Slot’s football was tough to watch at times, though the players were not exempt from blame. The famous Anfield atmosphere subsequently became non-existent and the home turf was less of a fortress and more of a place where teams rocked up with confidence.
The new man is keen to put all that right.
‘The first thing is try to play well,’ he says. ‘Football is what helps you more, but it’s not just only about playing well. This helps a lot but I think the supporters have to feel identified with what they see on the pitch.
The new Liverpool boss is looking to bring back the connection between the fans and the squad that was lost last season
‘Sometimes it’s not about just putting one ball in the top corner. A lot of times the ones watching the game are… OK, they cannot do it, but they can run, they can fight for the balls, they can press, they can fight until the last minute for every situation.
‘When they see this from the players of their team it’s easier to get behind that team. I will encourage my team to give them these things.
‘The most important thing that we can deliver is our performances. It doesn’t matter if I speak well, if I don’t speak well, if I say the right things or if I don’t say the right things. At the end people just want to see the team play well and deliver good results.
‘I know this is 90 per cent of my job.
‘For me, now, it is about creating a very good team, a very difficult team to beat. The team that I envision now, that I see and think of, if we become that team, I think we are going to be successful.’
Iraola’s team are at a training camp in Chicago ahead of a three-leg tour of America. The squad fly to Nashville on Friday after training to take on Sunderland there, before games against Wrexham in New York City and Leeds back here in the so-called Windy City.
