Andoni Iraola's wife has typically not attended Liverpool matches.
Andoni Iraola with wife
Andoni Iraola with his wife while at Bournemouth. (Image: X)
Liverpool head coach Andoni Iraola will make an emotional return to his former club, Bournemouth, on Sunday, just four months after his final match in charge of the Cherries. The Basque boss is expected to have his wife and children in attendance for the first reunion since departing the south coast to take the helm at Anfield.
The Reds remain undefeated under the 44-year-old, although they've secured victory in just one of their four league fixtures. They travel south following a Carabao Cup third round triumph over Tottenham, however. Earlier this season, Iraola revealed his wife, Itziar, doesn't typically attend matches live, but has begun making 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."
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Iraola shares a son and a daughter with his wife, Itziar. While he hasn't revealed much about his private life, the manager told BBC Sport in 2025 that his interests help him disconnect from football when he's at 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.
Andoni Iraola is returning to Bournemouth for the first time since his summer exit.
Andoni Iraola is returning to Bournemouth for the first time since his summer exit. (Image: Getty Images)
"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."
Last season, Iraola's Bournemouth side finished only three points behind Liverpool in the battle for Champions League qualification. Ahead of this weekend's reunion, the manager acknowledged there's no space for sentimentality as he faces opponents fresh from an impressive Europa League victory away at 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 explained. "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."