Andoni Iraola has had a tough start to life in charge of Liverpool, having only won two of his five games so far, but the Spaniard has received support from one of his former counterparts
Thomas Frank speaking on BBC's Match of the Day
Thomas Frank has backed Andoni Iraola at Liverpool(Image: BBC Sport)
Former Tottenham and Brentford manager Thomas Frank has backed Andoni Iraola to be a success at Liverpool, despite the Spaniard’s mixed start to life at Anfield.
The Reds have won just two of their five games under their new head coach this season, with Saturday’s goalless draw at home to Fulham meaning they have only earned six points from their opening four league games.
The stalemate against a side that had yet to pick up a point heading into the game continues an alarming run of results at home this year, with Liverpool having won just four games at Anfield in 2026, underlining the challenge that Iraola faces.
Nevertheless, former Spurs boss Frank believes the Reds’ head coach is up to the job, even if it takes time for him to get his message across.
“I’m not in doubt that he wants even more from his team, and I know Iraola,” Frank told the BBC’s Match of the Day.
“I really respect him, I think he’s an excellent coach, and I’m not in doubt that he will have success over time with Liverpool.
“We found some stats in what I know he wants to look a little bit more into. So, for example, you can look at the high turnovers in the championship winning season for Liverpool, in the shots after high turnovers and the direct attacks.
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 12: Andoni Iraola, Manager of Liverpool, speaks to Bradley Barcola during the Premier League 2026/27 match between Liverpool FC and Fulham at Anfield on September 12, 2026 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Matt McNulty/Getty Images)
Andoni Iraola has won just two of his games in charge of Liverpool so far
“That’s the intensity, that’s what Liverpool want. So I’m not in doubt that they have looked at that when they looked at Bournemouth.
“Then it’s gone down and it has had a little bit of a dip this season, but that will take time for Iraola to get it into the players.
“They’re playing every third day, still a few new players. But he’s a good coach and I’m sure he will get that intensity up because it’s very important for them.”
Iraola put his side’s latest disappointment down to a lack of freshness following the midweek win over Atletico Madrid in the Champions League, although he also insisted his team needs to find ways to come through their games.
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Liverpool doesn’t get long to recover before it’s back in action, with a clash against Tottenham - which is yet to score a single league goal this season - awaiting in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday.
"When you draw, especially at home, you can't be happy. Today we lacked a bit of freshness and we did not do enough offensively to make the difference," Iraola said after the draw with Fulham.
"We have been good enough to keep the clean sheet. It was slightly better in the second half. In the first half we started the game slow, we lacked energy and it was not enough, we have to be offensively better.”