Even though he won’t be there to see it, Mohamed Salah made it clear what he wanted to get his club back to their best.
‘I want Liverpool to go back to being the heavy metal attacking team that opponents fear,’ the Egyptian said last month as he prepared to depart Anfield following 257 goals and eight major trophies.
In short: he wanted Jurgen Klopp football, not Arne Slot football. He got his wish on the second part. Slot’s Liverpool is no more after Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes changed his mind and got rid. The question now is whether the new man can deliver the first.
It looks as though that’s going to be Andoni Iraola, the former Bournemouth boss who was also appointed on the south coast by Hughes, led the Cherries to sixth in the Premier League and was only three points away from pipping Liverpool to the final Champions League spot.
Bournemouth continued to move forward under Iraola, despite selling most of their best players last summer and then Antoine Semenyo mid-season. Liverpool, meanwhile, are going backwards – 24 points fewer than Slot’s first season, 23 fewer league goals scored, more conceded than in any season under Klopp and three times as many defeats as their title win in 2024-25.
So, is Iraola the man to get the heavy metal band back together?
Arne Slot is gone and it appears Andoni Iraola is the man to replace him at Liverpool
Mohamed Salah (centre) got his wish, seeing the end of Slot’s style and what appears to be a return to the football of Jurgen Klopp (right)
What he does have, that Slot struggled to find, is an identity. What may come as a surprise is that the raw numbers for Liverpool last season aren’t too far away from the 2019-20 title-winning season under Klopp.
Basically the same number of shots, exactly the same attack speed up the pitch, similar number of direct attacks and sequences of 10 or more passes that ended in a shot. Counter-intuitively, even, Slot’s Liverpool last season produced significantly higher fast breaks than Klopp’s title winners, as well as ones that led to shots.
They had less possession than Klopp’s side and far fewer sequences of 10 or more passes. Liverpool even topped the list last season for goals from turnovers high up the pitch.
| Category | Klopp 2019-20 | Slot 2025-26 | Iraola 2025-26 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Possession | 63.5% | 59.3% | 50.1% |
| Fast breaks | 38 | 57 | 47 |
| Goals from fast breaks | 10 | 7 | 9 |
| High turnovers | 406 | 285 | 298 |
| 10+ pass sequences | 682 | 565 | 316 |
| Direct attacks | 78 | 81 | 83 |
| Direct attack goals | 11 | 3 | 6 |
| Possession won in final third | 252 | 155 | 174 |
Yet, still, you knew what Klopp’s side wanted to be. You never did with Slot’s. He tried multiple formations: a 4-2-3-1, a 4-4-2, a diamond, three at the back, wingers, no wingers, two No 10s, no No 10s. By the end, neither Slot nor anyone else knew who Liverpool were.
You knew what Iraola’s Bournemouth were too. Like Klopp’s heavy metal rockers, the Cherries were typified by a high, relentless press, squeezing opponents into corners, forcing them into mistakes and – crucially – being ruthless when they did.
Only Manchester City and Chelsea had more shots after winning the ball back high up the pitch than Bournemouth this term. The season before, no one did. No side won possession in the final third of the pitch at least eight times in a Premier League match more often than Iraola’s side. No team recovered the ball anywhere on the pitch as much as Bournemouth.
Where Bournemouth won the ball high up the pitch this season – with over 50 of these turnovers leading to shots
Iraola’s Cherries were typified by a high, relentless press, squeezing opponents into corners, forcing them into mistakes and – crucially – being ruthless when they did
Bournemouth were fantastic at winning the ball high – as typefied by Alex Scott’s brilliant goal at the Emirates Stadium in April that secured a 2-1 win over Arsenal
That’s where they were better than Liverpool. Slot’s side only produced a couple fewer direct attacks than Bournemouth but scored as many goals from them. Klopp’s side were devastating from theirs.
So keen are Bournemouth to win the ball high up the pitch that long before new kids on the block Paris Saint-Germain made it famous, they used rugby-style kick-offs to punt it up field from the first whistle. And even if they don’t win it cleanly, Bournemouth are happy to break up the play. No side made more fouls in the opposition half last season than the Cherries – they’re generally the fouls least likely to draw a yellow card, too.
And when they do get it, Iraola wants his team to get it forward as quickly as possible. No team mustered as many direct attacks (ones that start just inside the team’s own half and mainly move towards the opposition’s goal and end in a shot or a touch in the opposition’s box) than Bournemouth, nor scored more goals from counter-attacks.
According to Opta, Bournemouth attacked the fastest of all Premier League teams (1.95 metres per second) during Iraola’s reign and only Everton averaged fewer passes per sequence.
Under Iraola, Bournemouth allowed their opponents among the fewest passes before attempting to win it back, showing how ruthless they are out of possession. Liverpool fans have missed that.
In many ways, it’s good for Salah that he won’t be there because there’s no way Iraola would let him off from the pressing and running and dirty work that Slot at times did.
Iraola will also look to get more out of his full backs than Slot, more akin to the days of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson bombing forward as one of the most creative double acts in the division. Slot struggled to utilise Milos Kerkez, the former Bournemouth full back, and Jeremie Frimpong, but they are both better suited to thrive under Iraola.
Bournemouth’s full backs push high and act as attacking outlets. Adrien Truffert, Kerkez’s replacement, was among the most creative defenders and highest crossers in the league last term. Only Lucas Digne provided more assists than Truffert’s five among defenders. Kerkez and Frimpong provided just two between them.
Truffert had the second-most touches of any Bournemouth player all season. He was always involved. Even in their draw with title-chasing Manchester City last month, look how high up the field Truffert (3) got on the ball.
Can he unleash Kerkez again?
The average position of left back Adrien Truffert (No3) in Bournemouth’s draw with Manchester City last month reveals how advanced Iraola wants his full backs to be, regardless of opposition
Milos Kerkez flourished at Bournemouth under Iraola – to the point that Liverpool paid £40m to bring him to Anfield last summer
Junior Kroupi was given freedom to create, flourish and set the tempo between the lines
There will be hope, too, that Iraola can help Wirtz thrive in the way that Justin Kluivert and Junior Kroupi have formed the creative midfield hub for Bournemouth, now that he’s getting accustomed to life in the Premier League.
Kluivert and Kroupi had to be a part of the team press but once in possession were given the freedom to create, flourish and set the tempo between the lines, like the band’s bass player, as their team-mates bombed on around them.
Ander Murillo, Iraola’s former team-mate and sporting director of AEK Larnaca, once described his style of football as ‘rock and roll’.
Sounds about perfect.
