"100 PER CENT!" Liverpool boss Iraola responds to Barcola and Wirtz criticism with warning for struggling blockbuster signings

Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola says he trusts Bradley Barcola and Florian Wirtz “100 per cent” despite their difficult starts to the season. German midfielder Wirtz endured a tricky debut campaign at Anfield following his big-money switch from Bayer Leverkusen and is yet to find the net this term.

French winger Bradley Barcola is also waiting to get off the mark for his new club, having joined in a record-breaking switch from Paris Saint-Germain.

But boss Iraola is sure that the pair will reach their potential with time. Speaking ahead of his side’s Champions League clash with Austrian side LASK, he said: "We need other players to give us those numbers.

“We trust the players we have now to play in those positions. These injuries have been because of the international break and it will happen to other teams. It is a matter of adapting to these circumstances.

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"With Bradley and Flo, they have had good games and bad games this season like everyone else. We know their level and we know they will give us good performances."

He added: "The possibilities are the same. The other day (against Manchester City), if Lewis Koumas scores the goal that he connects with really well, then it is one assist for Bradley Barcola.

"His performance is exactly the same but we will all say 'oof, he played really well with an assist'. Sometimes we focus only on the numbers.

"With Bradley, the other day, he had good situations and we did not finish them. Bradley and Flo are players that I trust 100%."

On Wirtz specifically, Iraola has warned the German international that he might need to get used to more severe criticism at Anfield. But he has also suggested that Wirtz will only show his true form when Liverpool are a more cohesive unit.

He said: “When you are at a big club like we are, when you don't have a good performance everyone starts looking for answers. The other day, he probably didn’t have his best game but he has had good games with us this season.

"He had some good performances in the national team - he scored one goal and he will have better or worse games but I would like to look at it more collectively and more how they help us play well and get results, and after I don’t care which one scores. I think it’s a more collective thing."