The highly-rated ex-Bournemouth coach Andoni Iraola is the frontrunner to succeed Arne Slot at Liverpool after the Dutchman was relieved of his duties at the weekend
Andoni Iraola is leaving Bournemouth
Andoni Iraola is set to hold talks over the Liverpool job(Image: Getty Images)
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Milos Kerkez knows better than most what Andoni Iraola could bring to Anfield as the Hungary international's former manager seemingly closes in on the Liverpool job.
Iraola is hot property after deciding to leave Bournemouth this summer and has emerged as the overwhelming favourite to succeed Arne Slot at Liverpool after the Dutchman was sacked on Saturday. Slot leaves his post following a disappointing second year at the helm, with Liverpool finishing the season in fifth place after losing 12 Premier League games.
Bournemouth finished just one place and three points below the defending champions despite the gulf in resources between the two sides. Iraola's exciting brand of football has already made him a popular choice to succeed Slot, with talks over the job set to take place this week.
Kerkez knows the Spanish coach better than most after working under him at Bournemouth for two years.
The left-back's stellar form under Iraola on the south coast earned him a dream move to Liverpool last summer in a £40million deal. Prior to making the move, he detailed how Iraola had helped him take his game to new heights.
“He helped me before the game to analyse this to get the assist,” Kerkez told The Athletic after celebrating an assist during a 2-2 draw at Tottenham with his former Cherries coach.
“He is helping everyone to improve as a player and as a person. I’m really thankful he has trusted me.”
Andoni Iraola and Milos Kerkez
Liverpool left-back Milos Kerkez flourished under Iraola at Bournemouth(Image: Robin Jones/AFC Bournemouth)
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Iraola's accomplishments at Bournemouth are even more impressive due to the manner in which they have been achieved. The Cherries play a swashbuckling brand of high-energy, attacking football which many feel would be a suitable for for Anfield, who were treated to years of 'heavy metal football' under Slot's predecessor, Jurgen Klopp.
Mohamed Salah, ahead of his final Reds game, called for a return to that brand of football in a social media post which many deemed as a dig at Slot's more pragmatic approach. A return to the previous way of playing "cannot be negotiable", the Egypt attacker even went as far as to say.
Kerkez, who endured a challenging start to life at Anfield, has spoken previously of Iraola's front-foot style and how it suited him as he initially sought to adapt to life as a Premier League player.
Andoni Iraola, manager of Bournemouth,
Iraola signed off at Bournemouth by guiding them to their highest ever league finish(Image: Maynard Manyowa/Getty Images)
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He arrived at the club just weeks after Iraola was plucked from Rayo Vallecano with the remit of progressing Bournemouth on and off the pitch.
“I expected the Premier League to be what it's like physically so it's not been difficult to adapt as I have the physical attributes for it,” Kerkez said back in April 2024.
“This season, I have grown a lot tactically and on the ball. Andoni Iraola's football is similar to what I am used to with attacking a lot and playing on the front foot, it's similar to my previous coach in the Netherlands.”
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