Andoni Iraola will be watching the World Cup closely as he makes plans for his debut season with Liverpool and Cody Gakpo and Alexander Isak have given him something to think about
20:33, 20 Jun 2026
Cody Gakpo and Alexander Isak.
Cody Gakpo and Alexander Isak.(Image: Getty Images)
Though the World Cup's group phase is only halfway through and there is a full pre-season schedule to get through before the new season starts, it is only 64 days away.
On August 23, Liverpool will travel to Newcastle for Andoni Iraola's first competitive game in charge. By then, more transfers will have been completed, and plenty of work will have been done on the training field.
While new arrivals like Victor Munoz, who signed for a fee of $46 million (£35 million) this week, will bolster the team, Iraola's primary job will be to get more from the existing roster after a hefty spend last year.
Fortunately, there have been a few signs of that being possible at the World Cup already, which Iraola will have taken note of.
Cody Gakpo was the star of the show as the Netherlands hammered Sweden by five goals to one in Houston, Texas, scoring twice and assisting once.
Last year, Gakpo looked jaded and lacking confidence. Only the season before that, though, he was pushed to new heights by Luis Diaz, who was vying for his spot on the left.
In Arne Slot's first year at the helm, Gakpo scored more goals than Diaz and was a bigger threat in the final third. Clichéd as it is, if he can get back to those levels, he will be like a new signing.
Cody Gakpo celebrates with Liverpool teammate Ryan Gravenberch after scoring for the Netherlands at the World Cup.
Cody Gakpo celebrates with Liverpool teammate Ryan Gravenberch after scoring for the Netherlands at the World Cup.(Image: Rico Brouwer/Soccrates/Getty Images)
Ryan Gravenberch didn't score, so he won't take as many of the headlines, but the Liverpool midfielder was much more spritely against Sweden than he has looked for a long while, too.
Taking the ball under pressure, the Reds ace was gliding past his marker with that trademark spin and dribble forward.
Too often last season, he was unable to get a grip of matches and properly influence them. Here, there was a reminder of the quality that he has when he is in a team that is functioning much better.
On the opposite side, Alexander Isak took his World Cup tally to three assists and a goal in two games for Sweden, setting up Anthony Elanga with a perfectly-weighted pass in behind.
Isak, in particular, can be a completely different player under Iraola, purely because of his fitness levels. Last season, he barely played, and looked a mile off it when he did make it onto the field.
Now, and with a summer of pre-season still to come, he can be a different beast entirely. Some of his touches — though not the one that led to one of Gakpo's goals — were sublime.
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"Isak is class," Daniel Sturridge posted on social media. "Every time Sweden look dangerous, he’s involved. Deserves a goal or assist. Not bad off the left either. Safe to say he’s getting back to his best."
Elsewhere, Alexis Mac Allister has been the subject of a complaint to FIFA. He and Lionel Messi — at least according to the Algerian FA — were fortunate to escape yellow or red cards in their World Cup opener.
Messi scored a hat-trick, but the African side was left furious with the Polish referee, Szymon Marciniak, who didn't caution either of the superstars in controversial circumstances.
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Florian Wirtz and Germany will take on the Ivory Coast shortly. And finally, Spain takes on Saudi Arabia on Sunday.
New Liverpool signing Munoz, however, will not feature because he is injured. He is expected to sit out the remainder of the group phase and could return in the knockouts.