Iraola says Liverpool cannot sustain desired level after Monaco defeat

Andoni Iraola's Liverpool surrendered a two-goal lead to lose to Monaco in a pre-season match at Anfield on 9 August 2026, leaving them with two wins and two defeats from their four summer friendlies.

Fans lined the streets outside Anfield to welcome Iraola and his squad for his first home match, with the game a sell-out and heightened expectation around the ground. Liverpool twice relinquished a two-goal advantage in the second half after Iraola made a series of substitutions, raising questions about the squad's ability to maintain the required intensity for a full match.

"It was quite similar to the game we played against Leeds," Iraola told LFC TV after the match. "We played a good first half, especially a good 30 minutes. Right now we probably don't have much more, in terms of the levels required to play like this. They deserved to turn around the game."

"We won the first two pre-season games, but the last two we cannot sustain the level we want for all of the game. As soon as we made some changes, players start to get tired and we cannot sustain that level. So, we have work to do," Iraola added, underlining his concern about depth as Liverpool prepare the final stage of their build-up.

The match also left selection questions ahead of the Premier League opener at Newcastle in two weeks' time, particularly over who will partner Virgil van Dijk at centre-back. Alongside Alisson and Cody Gakpo, Van Dijk returned after an extended post-World Cup break and started with 18-year-old Ifeanyi Ndukwe, who the club view as a talent but who will need a loan move this season because of work permit issues; Liverpool finished the game with Luke Chambers and Wataru Endo at centre-back.

Ronald Araujo, 27, completed his medical on Sunday as a season-long loan move from Barcelona — with an option to buy for around £47.2m — neared completion, while Jeremy Jacquet, 21, has not yet been involved in full training since joining from Rennes after a shoulder injury in February and a recent minor knee problem. "Jeremy Jacquet, we were in doubt whether to put him in," said Iraola. "We decided not to, but he should be fine for the next one. It's taking a bit more time than we were expecting."

Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz, who joined Liverpool in record-breaking transfers last summer at a combined cost of £225m, combined effectively in attack; Wirtz operated behind Isak in the number 10 role and Isak opened the scoring with a right-footed finish. Wirtz was described in the report as Liverpool's best player on the pitch, and after a second effort that looked to have crossed the line Isak said of the finish: "I think we agreed that me and Flo [Florian Wirtz], we both got a touch on the ball, but honestly I don't know who got the first one or the last one," Isak told LFC TV.

On his working relationship with the manager, Isak added: "Really good. I feel like the spirit is good in the group and we're all working hard to make things work. We're going to make sure that we're ready for the start."

Iraola has two pre-season games remaining — a double-header against Como on 16 August — before Liverpool begin their Premier League campaign at Newcastle.