Trey Nyoni looks to have already made his mark on new Liverpool head coach Andoni Iraola after two strong displays so far, offering a “very valuable” trait.
Nyoni excelled in the second half of the 4-2 win over Sunderland in Nashville, before impressing with another 45 minutes in the 1-0 win over Wrexham in New York.
Despite only playing half the game, the 19-year-old recorded the fourth-most touches (67) on Wednesday night – behind only Ifeanyi Ndukwe (99), Luke Chambers (89) and Dominik Szoboszlai (86), who all played at least two-thirds.
His confidence on the ball has caught Iraola’s eye, with the Spaniard praising his performance in his post-match interview with LFCTV.
“Trey is very good on the ball, very calm, he reads the situations well,” Iraola explained.
“We’re forcing him in the work without the ball, in the press, and he is absolutely doing very well. I think the timings of the jumps are very good.
“He is always confident on the ball so we encourage him.
“Sometimes even if he loses the ball, ‘try to find the No. 10, try to find the No. 9, even balls in behind, look a little bit further’ because he can do it, because he is so good.”
NEW YORK, USA - Wednesday, July 29, 2026: Liverpool's Trey Nyoni during a pre-season friendly match between Liverpool FC and Wrexham AFC at Yankee Stadium. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
With Iraola and his staff clearly working closely with Nyoni, particularly in his off-ball work and tasking more risks in possession, it could be that he takes up a more prominent role in the first team this season.
Effusive in his praise of the teenager, Iraola suggested he could find a home as a press-resistent No. 6.
“At the end, he is a midfielder who, I always say, you have to ask for the ball sometimes with pressure – and he doesn’t feel this pressure,” he continued.
“Even when he has one opponent quite close, he asks for that ball and he’s confident, he doesn’t rush. For me, that is very valuable.”
Speaking to reporters in the mixed zone at Yankee Stadium, Nyoni took a mature view on his place in the Liverpool squad.
“I’ve been in the team for two years, going into this season now I’m just trying to take it step by step,” he said.
“Every day [I need to be] training well and when I have the chance to play I just have to try and play as well as possible.
“Everything else will take care of itself. Everything’s good [under Iraola], it’s been good so far, so hopefully we’ll keep building on that.”