Liverpool have announced the appointment of former Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola as their new manager following the sacking of Arne Slot as their new boss hailed the club as "one of the biggest in the world"
19:33, 04 Jun 2026Updated 19:48, 04 Jun 2026
Andoni Iraola
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Andoni Iraola new manager of Liverpool (Image: Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
Liverpool have announced the appointment of Andoni Iraola as the club's new manager as the new coach hailed the club as "one of the biggest in the world".
The 43-year-old Spaniard will replace Arne Slot in the Anfield hot seat after the Dutchman was sacked just under a week after the 2025/26 season finished. Iraola left Bournemouth at the end of the season after guiding the Cherries to a 6th place finish and a Europa League spot, the first in the club's history, after finishing just three points behind the Reds.
Shortly after it was announced that Slot had lost his job, Iraola became the firm favourite to land the job. The former Rayo Vallecano boss' representatives held talks with Crystal Palace and AC Milan about their vacant positions before Liverpool made their move.
Head Coaches Arne Slot of Liverpool with Andoni Iraola of Bournemouth during the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and AFC Bournemouth at Anfield
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Andoni Iraola replaces Arne Slot(Image: Robin Jones - AFC Bournemouth, AFC Bournemouth via Getty Images)
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Iraola has reportedly signed a two-year contract. In a statement, the Iraola said: "Really excited, really excited. Because obviously you know about Liverpool, you know that it’s a big club, a massive club, one of the biggest in the world.
“But feeling inside and understanding a little bit more of this club, I always thought it’s a special club. You don’t need a lot of things to get attracted by Liverpool. Liverpool is Liverpool.
“But obviously the atmosphere, the supporters, the club, the players, the chance for me to coach top-level players, the chance to fight for titles. I think it cannot be more attractive than this. It’s difficult to find it. So, really excited to start.”".
Sporting director Hughes is a huge fan of Iraola having pushed for him to be appointed by the Cherries in his previous role as technical director.
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - JUNE 04: (THE SUN OUT, THE SUN ON SUNDAY OUT) Andoni Iraola new manager of Liverpool Football Club at Anfield on June 04, 2026 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
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Iraola has reportedly signed a two-year deal at the club(Image: Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
Bournemouth owner Bill Foley previously commented on Hughes' support for Iraola: “It was really a style of play that we were engaging in. We were really a counter-attacking team. I felt we needed to be on the offence. We needed to be aggressive, we needed to attack. That’s Andoni’s style. He’s a [Marcelo] Bielsa student and fast-paced.
“When we had the opportunity, it came to us from Richard Hughes, our technical director. He came to myself and to Neill Blake, the CEO, and then we started talking about it. I said 'if we don’t do this now, we may never have the chance to do this again'."
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Iraola flew into Merseyside on a private jet from San Sebastian in his homeland, visiting the club’s AXA training complex and Anfield before returning on the same plane late in the afternoon.
It is believed he wants to bring assistants Tommy Elphick and Shaun Cooper, analyst Tom Webber and fitness coach Pablo de la Torre with him to the club, and Liverpool are currently exploring options regarding the make-up of the backroom team.
Liverpool are understood to have followed Iraola’s career for more than a decade, having once tried to sign him as a player, and have watched his coaching career develop with a degree of admiration.