New Liverpool head coach Andoni Iraola sat down for an exclusive interview with The Anfield Wrap podcast, discussing the team's playing philosophy, comprehensive pressing, squad rotation, and connecting with fans. This article is the second part of the interview.

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Atkinson: Since you joined Liverpool, I've watched many interviews and reports about you. Dominic Solanke once talked about his experience working with you. He said he had to change his pressing style. You smiled when you heard that. You did ask him to adjust his pressing. He needed to understand that pressing isn't an individual action, but part of a larger system and the cooperation between players. Now that you're starting to work with these players, will you also start with these details, making some adjustments to their pressing style so that everyone's actions can truly be linked together?

Yes, ultimately, it takes time. When we were at AFC Bournemouth, it also took us some time to achieve this. Dominic Solanke himself is a player who is very good at pressing. I only coached him for one season, but he performed exceptionally well. He scored many goals and was also the first player to initiate the team's pressing. For us, he was an outstanding number 9.

However, as he himself said, sometimes the difference lies in some very subtle details, including the timing of actions and whether the entire team can remain consistent. Sometimes, a team decides to high press, and everyone will say: "We're going to high press, we're going to run."

But it's not about just running towards a target and pressing directly. The team must be organized and must seize the right moment. This is much more complex than simply telling players to run over and win the ball back. At this level of the game, things don't happen that way.

You must accurately judge when to go forward and when to stay in position. Everyone's actions must be coordinated, and the timing of their arrival must be precise. Even a second late, the opponent might break through your press, and then the team has to retreat.

So sometimes, you'll make mistakes first, and then gradually improve through review until the players truly understand. At that stage, everything usually becomes easier. This is a process and it takes time. We are trying to accelerate this process as much as possible.

There are still some players who haven't returned to the team yet. However, I also believe that we have a group of excellent players who play for a top club. Reaching this level usually means they also have an excellent understanding of these aspects. Some players don't need to make the same mistake three or four times; they might understand after just one mistake and adjust faster than others.

You just mentioned reviewing. Is that a very important part of your work with the players? There are still three pre-season games, and then games at Anfield. Will you let the players play these games first, and then tell them: "Okay, now let's look at what could have been handled differently, and what could have been done better." Is that how it works?

Yes. Including the game against Como, we will play five or six games. These games will actually be the best training. Maybe it's a good thing that the team doesn't get everything perfect at first, because that way we can get some suitable game clips to show the players and analyze to improve issues. I don't expect the team to get everything perfect from the start.

Frankly speaking, I think the team will definitely make mistakes, because so far, we have basically only trained with the players for 10 days. There is a lot of content we haven't fully covered, and we will need to constantly correct it.

However, I hope that overall, the team can give the impression that it is moving in the right direction. Players can make mistakes. Some players can understand the demands, some players can't fully understand yet, and some players will improve faster.

But overall, I hope that from the beginning, everyone can form an understanding: we know the direction, and we know where we are going, even if there are still some issues that need to be corrected.

Looking back at your work at AFC Bournemouth, you made that team perform above its budget level. We don't need to discuss specific numbers, but the team's competitive level indeed exceeded what its budget would suggest. However, at that time, you didn't have to deal with European competitions. First of all, are you looking forward to participating in the Champions League as a coach?

Yes, I'm really looking forward to it. As a player, I only participated in the Champions League once. Of course, we played in many Europa League matches, so I have experience participating in European competitions as a player.

However, the only time I participated in the Champions League was near the end of my career. Now I have the opportunity to lead Liverpool in the Champions League, which is an honor. I'm really looking forward to it, truly looking forward to it.

Because of work, I will study the schedule. Even just sitting there talking about the schedule, sometimes I feel like there are too many games, one after another, with almost no breathing room. Liverpool experienced this last season, playing three very difficult away games in a week, with a long trip to Turkey in between. This affects the entire team and naturally makes one think about squad depth. Does the team have enough players to cope with these different challenges?

I think you have to accept this, because all top clubs that enter European competitions face the same situation. For us, this competition is the Champions League. We definitely cannot rely on only 13, 14, or 15 players. At some stage of the season, we may need every player. Even if some players don't get playing time now, you want them to be ready when the opportunity comes.

I think the biggest challenge is not for the players who are constantly playing. As a player, I liked this rhythm: play, recover, then play, recover again. In this situation, players can usually maintain very good form.

The real challenge might be for those players who don't get enough playing time. You worry about other players getting over-fatigued, which makes it impossible to arrange genuinely sufficient training for those who haven't played. Finding a balance between the two is a problem.

Some players might not have played for four, five, or even six games in a row, but suddenly the team needs them on the field. How to keep these players at a consistently high competitive level and in good condition is a question coaches need to consider more.

For players who are constantly playing, the game itself is usually the best training. You need to take care of them and try to avoid preventable injuries. Of course, some injuries are difficult to avoid. But for players who are not starting, keeping them in form is the real challenge. This way, when the team needs to rotate, adjust personnel, or make substitutions, the team's overall level can remain stable.

So you think the team needs every player. Going back to what we talked about enjoying football, they need to enjoy training, and also enjoy the moments when they get opportunities. In a sense, those players who might seem less important to fans will become even more important, because when the team needs them, they must reach the corresponding level.

I think you also know how much coaches value players who don't start but can still maintain a very high standard in training. When a team has many such players, it is usually more likely to succeed. Because there will always be times in the season when they are needed, and they will respond.

When you need them and give them a chance, you also think: I hope he plays well, because he truly deserves to be here and deserves more opportunities.

I can give an example from my time at AFC Bournemouth, which is James Hill. In my first two seasons coaching the team, he didn't get much playing time. But even so, he continued to improve himself and eventually reached a level where he could start at any time. Last season, he started most of the games and performed at a top level. When this happens, you feel: everything he gets now, he deserves. I am also confident that he will continue to play at the highest level.

I think we also need a lot of such situations in our current squad. I hope these players can put pressure on those who might get more starting opportunities.

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