Bournemouth extended their unbeaten run in the Premier League to 13 at Newcastle, moving them onto 48 points and into eighth in the table at the final whistle.
That would likely be enough to secure European football, but the league is so congested that the Cherries must continue to pick up points – something Iraola is well aware of.
The boss has five more games left at the club, and he has the team in an excellent position heading into the conclusion of the campaign.
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Asked how much leaving the club with European football would mean to him when he leaves, Iraola said: “For me, it would be massive.
“Massive, believe me, after announcing the other day and telling the players, for me it's even more important, because you want to finish in a in a strong position.
“And also, I want the players to feel and to have these chances. And it would be for me amazing because it would mean a lot for the players, for the supporters.
Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola during the Premier League match at St James' Park, Newcastle. (Image: Owen Humphreys/PA Wire)
“It would be the first time in club history.
“But we are still very far. We cannot get ahead of ourselves because we still need a lot of points, a lot of wins, because there are a lot of teams in that fight.”
The squad fully believes they can achieve European football, too, something Iraola said comes in part from their young age as a group.
“Sometimes it is good, they are not conscious how difficult it is, and probably we have a young team, and sometimes they don't realize how difficult it is to come here and win, go away to win,” he said.
“And there is a good part on those things also, that probably they don't feel the pressure as much as other players that are more experienced, and they understand really, that is very difficult.”
There is always some concern that when a manager announces he will be leaving before the end of the season that it can result in a drop in form.
Bournemouth's Adrien Truffert celebrates scoring their side's second goal of the game with Marcus Tavernier during the Premier League match at St James' Park, Newcastle. (Image: Owen Humphreys/PA Wire)
But Iraola is in no doubt that that was never going to happen: “My worry was not that the players were not going to push until the end.
“I had no doubt about this. They showed me enough that I cannot put any question marks on them.
“But it's true that I knew if we don't get a good result today it was going to be because we announced two days before that, and everyone will be thinking it.
“I think I knew it was not going to happen. I trust these players. I think we are in a 13-game unbeaten run. It does mean that you compete every day.
“Sometimes you don't play well, sometimes you play better, but they are competing every day. And I hope we can keep this momentum and this feeling, these good sensations we have until the very end of the season.
“We still have five games. We still have to get more points because we have some teams ahead of us, but we have the opportunity.”