Andoni Iraola sent 'unusual' letter to Liverpool after rejecting transfer

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Andoni Iraola showed his class when he rejected Liverpool during his playing career, and the Reds have been linked with the Spaniard ever sinceAndoni Iraola rejected Liverpool during his playing career(Image: Liverpool FC via Getty Images)Andoni Iraola was confirmed as Liverpool's new head coach on Thursday, but it was over a decade ago that the Spaniard first came onto the Reds' radar.At the time, Iraola was a player for Athletic Bilbao, and Michael Edwards felt that the new Reds boss – then 31 years old – could be a shrewd addition to Brendan Rodgers' squad.After sending scout Julian Ward to watch Iraola in a game against Malaga, Liverpool was sold on Iraola, and made contact with him over the possibility of moving to Anfield.This all took place around the midway point of the 2013-14 season, and at the time Iraola's contract with Bilbao was due to expire in a matter of months. Iraola told Liverpool that he would let the club know his decision, and ultimately ended up signing an extension with Bilbao.The Times reports that Iraola informed Liverpool of his decision with a letter, and that the humble and self-deprecating tone of the letter marked him out as unusual.Iraola praised Glen Johnson, Liverpool's right-back at the time, while also expressing his surprise that he was surprised that Liverpool was still interested in him after watching the game against Malaga, so disappointed with his performance he was.From that point on, Edwards kept an eye on Iraola's career, both as a player and as a manager.Richard Hughes was the man who was responsible for finally bringing Iraola to the Premier League, playing a key role in recruiting him for Bournemouth in 2023.Hughes, Liverpool's sporting director, led the negotiations with Hughes this week and they went smoothly, with the new head coach signing a two-year deal just five days on from Arne Slot's dismissal.Iraola conducted an interview with club media after signing his contract, in which he expressed his excitement at taking over at Anfield."Really excited, really excited, because obviously you know about Liverpool, you know that it's a big club, a massive club, one of the biggest in the world," Iraola said."But feeling inside and understanding a little bit more of this club, I always thought it's a special club.

Not about the football side, also because what people think about even during the week, how they are passionate about the club and everyone, the ones who like football, the ones that probably are not as interested."But I have some experience with Athletic Club [as a player] that I could in some ways familiarise, but it's going to be fun to experience it from the inside."Asked what it was that attracted him to the Liverpool job, Iraola said: "I think you don't need a lot of things to get attracted by Liverpool. Liverpool is Liverpool."But obviously the atmosphere, the supporters, the club, the players, the chance for me to coach top-level players, the chance to fight for titles.

I think it cannot be more attractive than this. It's difficult to find it.