Andoni Iraola has spoken about his wife and kids' impact on his life away from football
Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola will return to Bournemouth on Sunday(Image: X)
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Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola will return to former club Bournemouth on Sunday, just four months after taking charge of the Cherries for the final time. The Basque boss is expected to be watched by his wife and children for the first reunion since he left the south coast took over at Anfield.
The Reds are unbeaten under the 44-year-old, though they have won just one of their four league games. They head south off the back of a Carabao Cup third round victory over Tottenham, though.
Earlier this season, Iraola confirmed his wife Itziar doesn't usually watch live but has started to make more exceptions. "My wife never normally comes to my games. But now she is starting to go because my kids want to go," he said ahead of the home opener against Nottingham Forest.
"The kids are starting to understand football a little bit and they will sometimes go. Not all the time, but they will be there for the first game because the timing is very good.”
Iraola has a son and a daughter with wife Itziar. While he hasn't shed too much light on his private life, the manager told BBC Sport in 2025 that their interests allow him to switch off from football when he's back home.
"Once I leave the work environment I go home and sometimes we don't speak anything about football," he said. "It's very good for me. When I have a day off my wife puts lots of plans in place!
"My family is very important. They are sacrificing a lot. I am going from country to country to the best clubs I have the opportunity to go, and they have to come with me. I am very clear I couldn't do this without them.
"If they tell me one day 'I want to go back home', I am leaving. We will go back home. I know there will be a moment in my career when I will have to not be the protagonist, when my kids are older and I won't be the boss any more. I will be happy and we will go back home and I will be the supporting team behind. I know this moment will arrive."
Andoni Iraola at his final Bournemouth match
Iraola is set for a reunion with former club Bournemouth on Sunday(Image: AFC Bournemouth via Getty Images)
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Last season, Iraola's Bournemouth team finished just three points behind Liverpool in the race for Champions League qualification. Heading into this weekend's reunion, the manager recognised there is no room for niceties as he takes on opponents coming off a statement Europa League win away to Real Sociedad.
“On the personal side, I’m really looking forward to meeting them, to hug them, it’s players that I love, staff that I have been working with, that I appreciate so much,” he said. “I was pushing for them yesterday when they were playing their first European game and I wish them all the best.
“But there is another part and that is the most important one right now: we need to go there and beat them and be as ruthless as possible. And leave all the talks for after the game.”
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