Andoni Iraola on Florian Wirtz, Winning at Liverpool, and the Pressure of Management, Presented by YETI: Men in Blazers 08/21/26

0:00Rog:You're listening to the Men in Blazers media network, Suboptimal Radio.

0:05Andoni Iraola:When you arrive to a club, especially a club like Liverpool, you need to show your level so you can belong there. We are in this process of, OK, let's win games, let's do well, let's be successful. My goal is to win the players first, to win the supporters later, and if it happens, I think we're going to be fine.

0:32Rog:And Dani, this Liverpool job is the first time you've managed a team whose fans expect to be top four. First time you've ever seen a squad filled with superstars, first time you'll experience a Champions League challenge. What made you think this Liverpool role in this moment was the moment for you to step in and do all three?

0:49Andoni Iraola:For me, obviously, it's the first time I have the chance probably to coach this level of players. I think the demands are going to be different, but also the players that I will have also will be different. There are certain things that are going to be new for me, like coaching in the Champions League, for example, and dealing with this difficult schedule. But I'm ready to go and I'm excited to start, honestly.

1:13Rog:I'm from Liverpool and I've loved watching you enter this singular city and you seem to get it. You seem to understand that this club and this city are forged by the political history, the social history, Can you tell us, how do you understand what Liverpool fans want from this club?

1:30Andoni Iraola:I think it's a special place. I think you feel it straight away. As soon as you start talking to people that live here, that are from here, there is a different sense of belonging. They consider themselves different, I would say, special. And I like it. I like this. And it doesn't sound very different from where I come from. I know also strong roots. I think I understand these things, yes. And what do they want from their football team? I think they want the team to represent themselves. And they are behind the team every time. A lot of people say, you know, here they celebrate tackles. They celebrate, like, good presses.

2:09Andoni Iraola:They celebrate to keep going, high rhythm. And obviously they like good football, like everyone. They like their team to win. But they also want a specific way. and they enjoy in specific games. Let's talk about the new role.

2:24Rog:You've inherited a Liverpool squad that two seasons ago won the league. The last campaign, more of a struggle, 12 losses on the way to fifth place. When you look at game film from last season, Andoni, what's the first thing you see that you want to adjust?

2:37Andoni Iraola:I think obviously if I am here, it's because the club wanted to change something. I think the manager that was here before me, he was very, very good. I think Arne did. He was here two years, he was champion of the Premier League. You know, that is fantastic, but there was a need to change something. I don't think it's like they chose me because I finished well, or I think they liked the style of my teams probably, how we were playing with the previous clubs. And the idea is to try to implement some of those things, knowing that now the ambition is different, the challenge is different, and we are in this process.

3:15Rog:What about your style? If you were to put it into words, can you put your style into words for us?

3:21Andoni Iraola:It's not easy, no, because at the end it's difficult to talk about yourself, about how your teams play, but I think everyone understands. I've been here three years already in the Premier League and even the players, when I arrived, they already knew, OK, we know more or less you are going to demand us, we know how your teams play. I'm very thankful because they've been trying to catch everything. It's a very small time. I'm trying to introduce all the things. Sometimes it's difficult to get everything together, too much information. But I'm happy because they are giving me everything in terms of attention, trying to understand what we want.

4:03Andoni Iraola:Okay, this you don't like then. Okay, I get it. and I think once I see them even arguing between themselves on the pitch, and I say, no, this is a good start, this is a good thing. Even if it's not perfect, because later our purpose is, you yourself have to be the first one to correct, to find the solutions. And when I see them half time and they spend two times, arguing, no, no, because we said we have to do like this and then jump, and then wait here, and then, you know, and that's the start of something that I think is going to end well.

4:39Rog:They have to own your ideas. Yes, yes, yes. Last summer's marquee signings, Florian Wurtz, Alexander Izak, both struggled last campaign to find their creative confidence, their swagger. Both men are undoubtedly prodigiously talented. How do you diagnose what you need to do to get them both firing again?

4:58Andoni Iraola:I think the most important thing is that they are good players and no one doubts that they are very good players. So we have to try to put them in position where we can see their strengths and we can see what they are able to do. And I think they've started really well the pre-season. I don't know how the season is going to develop, but I think both are in a good place to have a strong season.

5:21Rog:So Wurtz in particular, can you talk about what you want to do for him to be the heartbeat creatively of your team?

5:28Andoni Iraola:Yes, I think Florian understands very well the game. on the ball, without the ball, he understands the spaces that he has to take, who is covering him, how he has to move, how to damage the opposition. Sometimes he gets too attracted to the ball because he wants all the time to be involved, to touch all the ball. Sometimes I have to tell him, sometimes leave some distance, wait, be a little bit more patient so the game arrives to you and then you can hurt the opposition. But I think he loves the game. He asks the correct questions and you can feel it straight away.

6:01Rog:Can you talk about the back line? The injury to Joe Gomez means you're shuffling through the options to find a partner for your iconic Virgil van Dijk in that back four. Talk to us about that process and how you made that decision.

6:13Andoni Iraola:Yes, I think we have the advantage of having Virgil. Virgil has been one, if not the best defender of the last decade, I would say, and I think we have to surround him properly. We think with Jeremy Jaquet, with Leoni, we have the centre-backs that we want here long-term. We had also the situation with Joe that covers us centre-back, right-back. We trust also Conor Bradley. I think he's going to be the long-term solution for the right-back position. So I think it made sense to sign Araujo because at the end he's a player that I knew very well from La Liga. he's a centre-back he can cover us also in the right-back position and I'm very happy right now with the position I think as long as we start recovering Leoni we start recovering Joe Gomez I think we'll be good to go in that defensive side

7:09Rog:You play football and you train with an incredible intensity and in pre-season you've talked about how the players need to uptick their endurance they can't run for 30 minutes yet or take time to build up their fitness levels You know, a Premier League season and a Champions League season, they're a marathon, not a sprint. Ideally, when do you want your team to peak physically? What month?

7:31Andoni Iraola:Yeah, I realise when I'm here in Liverpool, I have to be very careful with the things I say. Because when I'm in the 30 minutes and stuff, it was not just about the physical side. It was also about the mental side of the game. You know, there is a tendency when you start to get tired, you start not to pay the same attention. You start to, okay, throwing doesn't matter, we allow them to go out, I arrive a little bit later to my position. So these things that mentally require an effort, you know, we have to be ready to be like focused 90 minutes. And it's not just about the legs, you know, it's about the effort you have to make mentally to not relax, not even when we are winning.

8:15Andoni Iraola:No, it's not, we cannot give any, because we start giving a little bit and the teams we are playing against are very good. so they bite you a little bit more. And then it's difficult to turn the game around. And these moments mentally, I think, is more probably than the physical side now.

8:32Rog:At Liverpool, I'm fascinated. The Kop, I mean, it's an institution. It's also a life force that determines so much about the mood of this club. Jurgen Klopp told us that he saw himself as an emotional conductor of that fan base, intentionally revving them up in key moments. The fans loved in victory, him walking towards them, the fist pumps, you know, always beautiful, the moment of bonding post-game. We know you as a quieter sideline presence. What should the Kop expect from you, Andini?

9:01Andoni Iraola:My ambition is to win a lot of games so I can feel like part of them. You know, when you arrive to a club, especially a club like Liverpool, it's like you need to show your level so you can belong there. And we are in this process of, OK, let's win games, let's do well, let's be successful so we can inside us feel we are part of this and this is the challenge for us. To let the games, the results be the thing that connects you rather than face-to-face. At the end, I'm in a great position right now but you want to show that you belong there, that Liverpool were right to put me in this position and you can only get it with good games, good football, good results so everyone can be proud and I also can feel comfortable and celebrate together.

9:47Rog:I'm always fascinated when you talk about the role of managers and players. You've always been really quite modest. You've been deferential to the players. You talk about how managers should avoid becoming the protagonist. We always make the managers the face of the team. We lift them up as if they're playing each other. This is your quote. We're not so important at the end. In the end, the game is for the players. I'm always interested, what percentage of the Premier League is about the manager and Donny and the decisions they make?

10:13Andoni Iraola:I think this game is about the players. If I win things, it's because I have very good players. I have to maximise their potential, but if the level is not there, it's impossible. As good as you can be as a manager, it's about giving them the right environment, helping them tactically, understanding what they need, sometimes be very demanding with them, but the end is their level, what will give us the wins, the title, whatever.

10:41Rog:Jürgen Klopp, you said he's their friend but not their best friend. How do you describe the relationship?

10:46Andoni Iraola:Sometimes our tendency, because we've been players, we've been in changing rooms, is when you start to get too close and then you understand with the years, because after you have to take difficult decisions and you have to be very honest, put the team first. So you understand that you have to keep the distance, keep the distance. So every time you also talk to them, it's meaningful, there is a respect there in between. That's the key of the management, I would say, yes.

11:15Rog:You took Bournemouth to their highest ever Premier League finish. It was incredible to watch. But when you first arrived at the Cherries, you had zero wins in your first nine games. We've talked about it a lot. You kept telling everyone, my methods take time to kick in. How long should Liverpool fans expect to wait before they see true era all the ball?

11:33Andoni Iraola:I hope they don't have to wait as much, definitely. I think it's not easy when you change clubs, when you change the style of the team. It happened in Bournemouth, it's happening now here in Liverpool. Everything is not going to be perfect straight away, but I trust my players right now and I think we are in a position where without being 100 % probably at the beginning, we still are in a place where we can win games and we can be a good team. I think in Precision we've had good moments, not like full perfect games, but things that for me are encouraging also to start the season in a good place.

12:13Rog:You have a beautiful quote about the game that I adore. These are your words. At the end, we have to enjoy the sport. And if you don't allow yourself to dream a little bit, it becomes boring. What's the minimum possible for Liverpool this season that will make you proud? And what can Liverpool fans dream of about the season?

12:31Andoni Iraola:From my personal side, I've got very clear that I want to enjoy the season. I want to enjoy it. I know the responsibility. I know the pressure, I know everyone will be expecting the maximum from us, but I want to enjoy this scenario because at the end it's a game. If you don't see this, probably you are going to take less brave decisions if you want. You are not going to be as free. You are, I think, sometimes to achieve big things you have to be ready to lose a lot also. My goal is to win the players first, to win the supporters later, and if it happens, I think we're going to be fine.

13:10Rog:To you, to your way, to the season ahead, and Doni, thank you. Thank you very much. Health and happiness. Big, big love. Courage.