Andoni Iraola brings 'hope and excitement' to Liverpool as appointment praised
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Liverpool FC NewsFeaturesAndoni IraolaAndoni Iraola is on the verge of being named Liverpool's new head coach as a two-year deal nears completion, with Danny Murphy and Jamie Carragher sharing their views on the appointmentAndoni Iraola is set to become Liverpool's new head coach(Image: Getty Images)Andoni Iraola is on the brink of being announced as Liverpool's new head coach.The 43-year-old has reached a verbal agreement to succeed Arne Slot and is poised to sign a two-year contract. Should Iraola's appointment be confirmed before the week is out, it will bring to a close a turbulent seven days that began with Slot's dismissal.While the Dutchman will always be remembered as the man who guided the Reds to their first Premier League title in front of supporters, his second campaign on Merseyside proved considerably more troublesome.
It would be fair to say that a significant number of supporters had lost confidence in him before the season drew to a close.However, former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy believes incoming boss Iraola, who steered Bournemouth to a club-record sixth-place finish in the Premier League last season, will reinvigorate the Anfield faithful.He said: "I'm quite excited because after watching Bournemouth play, there's no reason to think he's not going to try and play the same way — in terms of being courageous and on the front foot and trying to press teams with high energy and play attacking football."When a fanbase becomes disillusioned with a manager and his style of play - and then start turning on him - you're delaying the inevitable. I do believe Liverpool are better placed now and that's not all down to Slot.Danny Murphy has offered his opinion(Image: Getty Images)"Bringing in Iraola was the best option because the fans go into a new campaign with hope and excitement, rather than fear."You do not want to start the season where the players are feeling the anxiety from the outset, and this was the best way for Liverpool to do it."Murphy's former Reds teammate Jamie Carragher had indicated he would have favored Xabi Alonso to succeed Slot, citing his pedigree at major clubs.And while Murphy is enthusiastic about Iraola's arrival — who used to play in the same youth side as Alonso in San Sebastian — he does share some of Carragher's concerns."I do have a couple of reservations because he's never managed a club of this size before, and he will be a little bit surprised at how intrusive it will be on his life, when you manage Liverpool," said Murphy to the BBC."Even as a player, that changes overnight because it's one of the biggest clubs in the world and everything you do will be scrutinized and talked about, locally and globally."The only other reservation is whether he will be able to play high-intensity football every few days because that will require a certain level of fitness, which we saw with Jurgen Klopp's teams with the flying full-backs, the midfield dynamism and the work-rate of the attackers."It's difficult to see how to create that with what he's got at the moment, so the summer transfer window is huge for Liverpool in that respect.
The current squad lacks legs and dynamism and isn't filled with brilliant players off the ball."Choose Liverpool.com as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.Andoni IraolaArne SlotAFC BournemouthLiverpool FC