Premier League 2026-27 preview No 14: Liverpool
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Guardian writers’ predicted position: 4th (NB: this is not necessarily Andy Hunter’s prediction but the average of our writers’ tips)Last season’s position: 5thProspectsAndoni Iraola did not have to be sold on Liverpool when they came calling for a coach courted also by Milan, Bayer Leverkusen and Crystal Palace after his sterling work at Bournemouth. “They said we would have some challenges, we would have to replace important players leaving, we have some injuries, but we are here to solve these kind of problems.” Validating last summer’s expensive recruitment strategy, restoring the faith of the Anfield crowd and rebuilding in an impatient environment can be added to that list.Liverpool were enticed by Iraola’s style of play, but his ability to step back and problem-solve – taking Bournemouth into Europe last season despite losing most of his defence in the summer and Antoine Semenyo in January, for example – will have also appealed.
The 44-year-old Basque has no silverware, or even European experience on his CV, but his record of consistently improving attractive teams, which resulted in Bournemouth qualifying for Europe for the first time in their history last season, made him one of the most coveted coaches available this summer.Stat attackLiverpool had a weird, erratic campaign in 2025-26. Iraola was unbeaten in his final 18 league matches last season and will need to bring similar consistency to Liverpool.StatStar signingJeremy Jacquet celebrates scoring his team’s second goal during the pre-season friendly against Como.
Jacquet’s recovery has affected his first pre-season at Anfield, but he is considered an immediate, if inexperienced, solution to a problem position and impressed on his first outing against Como.Set for a breakthroughThere may be more opportunities for Rio Ngumoha depending on how Liverpool’s winger chase goes, but, of all the young talents on display this summer, no one pushed their claims further than Trey Nyoni. Nyoni and Ngumoha were part of Slot’s stretched first team squad last season, but the former’s involvement was limited to six substitute appearances in the Premier League plus eight cup outings.