Andoni Iraola has wasted little time in laying down a marker for Liverpool\u2019s headline arrivals, Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz, as he looks to raise the level of both players in his first season in the Anfield dugout.<\/p>\n
Wirtz produced the stronger return of the two last season, ending the campaign with 15 goal involvements in all competitions. Even so, the 23-year-old did not fully meet the expectations that followed him to the club. Isak\u2019s year was far more difficult. A broken leg kept him out for several months and he managed only four goals in 22 appearances.<\/p>\n
With a full season now behind them, Iraola wants more from both players in 2026\/27, but his view on Isak is clear: fitness comes first. He believes the striker\u2019s best route to better performances is to stay available.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it is a massive season for Alexander,\u201d said the Spaniard. \u201cHe knows at the end it is [about] two things: the first is availability, and without availability we cannot have the second thing, which is the performance level.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I think this has to be the first aim for us, to keep him in a good place in terms of being available. I\u2019m sure if we manage to do this he will perform well because he has been very good during the preseason.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we can keep him at a good level he will score his goals and he will be a threat. I have no doubts about his level.\u201d<\/p>\n
Isak now has the chance to respond on Sunday, when he makes his first return to St James\u2019 Park in the Premier League opener. The trip brings an awkward reunion with Newcastle United and, given the nature of his departure, a hostile reception is expected.<\/p>\n
Iraola was equally positive about Wirtz before that game, but also pointed to an area for improvement. He wants the Germany international to show more patience and allow the game to come to him, rather than constantly seeking the ball.<\/p>\n
\u201cFlorian understands the game very well, on the ball and without the ball,\u201d Iraola told Men in Blazers . \u201cHe understands the spaces that he has to take, who is covering him, how he has to move, how to damage the opposition.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes, he gets too attracted to the ball because he wants to be involved and touch the ball all the time. Sometimes, I have to tell him to leave some distance, wait, be a little bit more patient so the game arrives to you, and then you can hurt the opposition.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Iraola demands more from Isak and Wirtz, with fitness and patience key in 2026\/27.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18693,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[175,194],"tags":[1836,1981,180],"class_list":["post-18694","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-liverpool","category-newcastle-united","tag-2026-27-premier-league","tag-gameweek-1","tag-player-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18694","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18694"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18694\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18693"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18694"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18694"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.weplayfpl.com\/news-articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18694"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}