Gary Lineker calls Andoni Iraola’s choice ‘strange’ and says Liverpool’s experiment needs to stop right away
Gary Lineker has raised some eyebrows over Andoni Iraola’s choice to play Bradley Barcola as a striker after Liverpool’s surprise 3-2 loss to Fenerbahce.
Usually, Barcola plays on the left or right wing, but on Wednesday night in the Champions League, he was put up front as the main striker – and it didn’t go well. The speedy French forward had just one shot on target out of three, missed two big chances, lost the ball six times, yet stayed on the pitch for the full 90 minutes.
Since joining Liverpool in a huge £123 million move from Paris Saint-Germain, Barcola’s performances have been mixed. Apart from a hat-trick against LASK, the 24-year-old has only managed two assists in 11 other games.
Iraola’s plan seemed to be to play Barcola up front so he could put Rio Ngumoha on the left and Victor Munoz on the right. Ngumoha impressed again, but he was taken off in the 66th minute for Cody Gakpo, with Barcola moving to the right after Munoz was replaced by Alexander Isak.
Gakpo and Isak quickly combined to give Liverpool a 2-1 lead, but fans were puzzled why Barcola wasn’t subbed out after Liverpool let two goals slip in the last 17 minutes to lose 3-2.
Lineker shared his surprise that Liverpool’s big summer signing was played as a striker instead of on the wing, calling it “odd” on The Rest Is Football podcast.
“I thought it was unusual,” Lineker said. “He doesn’t seem like the kind of player to play there, so I was surprised. Iraola said Barcola is better wide, but they wanted to try something different. But why play a £100 million star out of position? It seemed a bit strange.”
Normally, Barcola would have been taken off for a quieter game, but his big price tag probably kept him on.
When asked why he tried Barcola as a striker, Iraola said, “Sometimes you want to experiment. We thought it was a good day to try him up front. He’s usually a winger and more comfortable outside, but it’s an option we wanted to explore.”
Barcola is feeling the pressure of his price tag, much like Florian Wirtz, who also faced challenges after a huge £116 million transfer last summer.
Still, Barcola has shown flashes of brilliance and believes his best football is yet to come at Anfield.
“No, I don’t think I’m at my best yet,” Barcola told Sky Sports. “You haven’t seen the best version of me. We’re working with the team to make the most of my strengths, and things are improving. People are starting to understand my style better, and I think it’s going well.”
A steady run as a left winger, his preferred spot, could help Barcola play a big role for Iraola, starting with their game against Crystal Palace on Sunday, November 8.