HISTORY REPEATING ITSELF? Iraola's damning pre-season comments spark fears over slow Liverpool start - but new boss knows all about that

Andoni Iraola's tenure at Liverpool has not started brilliantly. But the Basque boss took time to settle at Bournemouth too before hitting top speed.

Having guided the Cherries into Europe for the first time in their history, Iraola was earmarked as the man who would take over the Reds' reins from Arne Slot. But since being hired in June, his side hasn't prospered.

In a friendly against Monaco on Sunday, Liverpool went 2-0 up inside 30 minutes but were defeated 3-2. Pre-season matches have to be taken with a pinch of salt, but the manager's post-match comments have sparked concern, as he damningly admitted his squad "cannot sustain the level we want" for entire matches.

There is also work to be done in the transfer market and some supporters can be forgiven for having reservations with the new Premier League campaign just over 10 days away. However, patience will be key with Iraola, as his spell with Bournemouth began in an equally underwhelming fashion.

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In 2023, he was appointed to replace Gary O'Neil. This was the Basque coach's first job in England, having previously managed AEK Larnaca, Mirandes and Rayo Vallecano.

To say he failed to fly out of the gates is an understatement. After just nine games in charge, his team were winless and sat 19th in the Premier League. Sack rumblings had begun.

Iraola brought with him a stark change to how O'Neil and other coaches who came before him like Eddie Howe had done things. Ex-Cherries forward Antoine Semenyo said he and many other players doubted their manager and initially struggled with a more intensive approach to match preparation.

"I didn't see it at the start," said Semenyo, speaking on All Out Football's In The Mixer. "When he came in, he had his way of playing and it was very new to us, the way he structured the weeks.

"We didn't really have any days off, so it's very hard for a team to go from having Wednesday/Sunday off to having no days off. It was very different at the start. The results weren't going our way and the fans were saying he needs to be sacked. Everyone slowly got used to the system and it just went up from there."

Liverpool's players are likely experiencing just this at the moment, with predecessor Slot often being criticised for the amount of time he gave them off. But if faith is shown in Iraola, it appears that he can deliver.

In an interview given in 2025, the manager claims the Bournemouth board heavily backed him and that they were the ones who showed him data that belied the poor early results. Eventually, things started to click.

A 2-0 home win against Newcastle in November 2023 kick-started a run of seven unbeaten league matches. Bournemouth finished 12th in Iraola's first campaign and his second saw improvement as they placed ninth. But it was last term that Iraola's vision really became a reality, as his Cherries finished sixth and secured a historic place in the Europa League.

Iraola could easily have been shown the door at the Vitality Stadium after this rocky beginning, but the club's trust in him paid dividends. Though his pre-season with Liverpool makes for grim reading, even if the start of this season is underwhelming, he's proven that good things come to those who wait.

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