The Andoni Iraola era at Liverpool is gradually beginning to take shape as July begins and the 2026/27 season starts to come into view.
The Reds’ new head coach is just over three weeks away from his first matchday experience in the role when his team commence their pre-season tour to the United States, and the previously agreed signing of Jeremy Jacquet was made official on Wednesday.
Later that day, The Times reporter Paul Joyce took to X to reveal news of four further additions at Anfield, each in an off-field capacity.
The journalist confirmed that four new names have been added to Iraola’s backroom staff at Liverpool, with coaches Tommy Elphick, Shaun Cooper, fitness coach Pablo de la Torre and analyst Tom Webber all following the 44-year-old from Bournemouth to Merseyside.
The significant backroom upheaval was fully expected after Arne Slot’s dismissal at the end of May, which duly prompted the exits of his aides Sipke Hulshoff, Giovanni van Bronckhorst and Ruben Peeters.
Want more Empire of the Kop coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust
The addition of the quartet who served under the Spaniard at the Vitaly Stadium had been anticipated for several weeks, with The Athletic reporting at the start of June that Iraola had been hoping for his south coast accomplices to join him at Anfield.
There had been speculation over a potential Liverpool return for Thiago Alcantara in a coaching capacity, although that seems to have quietened in recent weeks.
Iraola will no doubt be glad to have a few familiar allies alongside him in Elphick, Cooper, De la Torre and Webber, and for the club it offers a greater sense of stability now that several backroom vacancies have been filled.
The coaching staff will soon begin working with the players, with pre-season training set to commence in the next couple of weeks. The involvement of several Reds at the World Cup means that the Spaniard won’t have a full squad initially, but some of the big names are likely to be back in situ by the end of this month.
Piece by piece, the new era at Liverpool is beginning to take shape, with the start of another season now gradually creeping into view.
Welcome to our Live Comments section, where new comments will appear automatically
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Notify me of follow-up comments by email.
Notify me of new posts by email.
