Iraola says Liverpool must improve after Monaco come from 2-0 down to win 3-2 at Anfield
Andoni Iraola said Liverpool have work to do after Monaco came from two goals down to beat Liverpool 3-2 in a pre-season friendly at Anfield on 9 August 2026, a result that left the head coach frustrated by a “tired” second-half performance. He told LFCTV: “As soon as we have made some changes they start to get tired, we cannot sustain that level, so we have work to do.”
Iraola, who last managed at Anfield almost exactly a year ago when his Bournemouth side lost 4-2, oversaw a Liverpool team that started brightly but were punished for defensive lapses as Monaco overturned a 2-0 deficit. The defeat was Liverpool’s second successive pre-season loss following a 4-2 reverse to Leeds, after victories over Wrexham and Sunderland on their US tour. The match underlined that Iraola’s squad still carry the defensive issues that troubled them previously.
Alexander Isak put Liverpool ahead in the 16th minute after a midfield exchange between Ryan Gravenberch and Dominik Szoboszlai, the Swede rifling low into the corner, and Florian Wirtz doubled the lead after forcing a goalmouth scramble. Wirtz had earlier tested Lukas Hradecky with a shot, and Liverpool’s attacking play in the opening period produced clear chances for Lewis Koumas and Wirtz before the break.
Virgil van Dijk conceded a penalty in the 44th minute for a trip on Aleksandr Golovin and the Russian stroked the spot-kick home to make it 2-1 at half-time. Iraola replaced Ifeanyi Ndukwe with Wataru Endo and substituted Alisson Becker for Giorgi Mamardashvili at the interval; he then made more sweeping changes just before the hour, including Rio Ngumoha, Milos Kerkez and summer signing Víctor Muñoz.
The match was levelled after Mamardashvili saved from Mika Biereth only for the striker to tap in the rebound, bringing the score to 2-2 before Monaco pressed for a winner. Monaco’s second half was dominant as the game became fragmented by multiple substitutions from both managers, an approach Iraola and Monaco coach Filipe Luís employed during the period.
Monaco completed the turnaround in the 88th minute when Paris Brunner met a left-wing corner with a header to make it 3-2; the goal was greeted by an eerie silence in the stadium, with almost no away fans present. Home supporters voiced groans as Liverpool squandered a two-goal lead, and Ngumoha received some applause when his name was sung after coming on, having been selected on the right wing ahead of Federico Chiesa.
Squad and fitness issues also influenced selection: Ifeanyi Ndukwe, 18, and Lewis Koumas, 20, were the only fringe players to start if Kostas Tsimikas, back from a loan at Roma, is excluded, while Jérémy Jacquet and Curtis Jones were not considered because of fitness doubts. On those decisions Iraola said: “Jérémy, we were in doubt whether to pick him today, should be fine for the next one. Curtis [there is] something wrong with his hip, [it] didn’t make sense to risk [him].” He also noted Ronald Araújo is due to arrive on loan from Barcelona but that the deal is not yet complete, and that Alexis Mac Allister is still to return from World Cup duty; Iraola added he did not want to rush the “£50m signing from Rennes” into action after a chequered time with injury.
Only a double-header against Como — the first of which will be played behind closed doors — remains before Iraola’s competitive debut away at Newcastle on 23 August, with his home league debut scheduled against Nottingham Forest a week later. The next fixtures give the new manager a final fortnight to address the issues he identified.