An experienced international attacker has told new Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola he is ready to ‘look elsewhere’, if it becomes clear he will not receive regular game time next season.
Iraola, who was appointed as Arne Slot’s successor on June 4, is expected to be handed significant funds to reshape a Reds squad that massively underperformed last season, as their Premier League title defence culminated in a fifth-placed finish.
That poor form led to Slot being axed and former Bournemouth boss Iraola taking the reins on a two-year deal, and the Spaniard recalled Anfield’s roar when Federico Chiesa scored a late winner against his old side last August as one of the reasons for choosing Merseyside as his next home.
Indeed, speaking upon his arrival at Liverpool, Iraola reflected said: “[Chiesa] scored and the place erupted. It was crazy, no? I want now to feel this from the other side.
“At the beginning when you arrive at any club, I think you need to kind of prove a little bit yourself.
“You need to earn the right also to belong. I want to do this as quickly as possible so I can also celebrate with them and I can be part properly of those celebrations.”
While Chiesa appeared to play an unintentional part in Iraola’s future, his own could now be away from Anfield, following the Italy international’s latest comments.
The 28-year-old admits he’s ready to quit the Reds this summer and will hold talks with Iraola over his future at Anfield.
Liverpool signed Chiesa in a perceived bargain £12.5million deal from Juventus two years ago, but the Italian forward struggled to make an impact under Slot.
Indeed, across two seasons in the Premier League, Chiesa has started just two matches and has played a total of 422 minutes, recording just two goals and one assist.
Chiesa claims that Slot actually blocked a potential exit in the January transfer window, with his old club Juve expressing an interest in a return to Turin.
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However, the Euro 2000 winner insists he will ‘look elsewhere’ if he is not part of Iraola’s plans for next season.
“I’ve played very little since the start of 2026,” Chiesa said in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport.
“I have a great relationship with Liverpool. In January, the club and Slot told me I couldn’t leave, they needed me, partly for numerical reasons. We were in a tight spot. I understood the situation and I was left smiling. Liverpool is always talked about, last year they helped me win the Premier League.
“Liverpool had informed me, but then the negotiations with Juve didn’t come to fruition.
“I repeat… I want to play. If I don’t find consistency in the Premier League, I’ll have to look elsewhere.
“I barely played in my first year at Liverpool, and in the last season, very little. I’ll go on a training camp in the US, then I’ll talk to the club and the new manager, Iraola, and we’ll see.
“I’m open to anything, the important thing is to play. I’m not so presumptuous as to say: I have to be a starter. I’m ready to fight for a place, anywhere.”
Meanwhile, an actual regular Liverpool starter is also pushing for a move away from the club this summer, having lost a major sponsor following Slot’s recent exit from the club.