Five Liverpool players were ‘held back’ from coming back for the first day of pre-season with Andoni Iraola.
Liverpool’s pre-season is just around the corner, but manager Andoni Iraola will start without five key players. The team will return to the AXA Training Centre on July 13 as Iraola steps in following Arne Slot’s departure at the end of last season.
Iraola has put together his coaching team by bringing in trusted staff from his former club Bournemouth. Tommy Elphick and Shaun Cooper join as first-team coaches, Pablo de la Torre will be assistant coach, and Tom Webber comes on board as the tactical analyst. The four were confirmed on July 2 and will lead Liverpool’s three-game tour in the United States.
Liverpool’s tour includes matches against Sunderland in Nashville on July 25, Wrexham at Yankee Stadium in New York on July 29, and Leeds in Chicago on August 2. After that, they’ll play home friendlies against Monaco and Como, before kicking off the new season away to Newcastle on August 23.
However, Iraola won’t have his full squad right away. Five players won’t join the early pre-season because they were in the World Cup. The Dutch players Virgil van Dijk, Ryan Gravenberch, and Cody Gakpo are out after their team exited in the last 32. Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak are also missing.
FIFA recommends a 21-day rest for players after the season or a tournament like the World Cup, so these players get time off. This rule was agreed in July 2025 alongside a rule for at least 72 hours between matches. FIFA says clubs can adjust this based on their schedules, but Liverpool usually follows this three-week break, according to the Liverpool Echo. That means these five players should join the team during the U.S. tour.
Three Liverpool players are still playing at the World Cup: Alisson Becker with Brazil, Alexis Mac Allister with Argentina, and new signing Victor Munoz with Spain.
Liverpool’s traveling pre-season squad will also feature several young players hoping to impress the new boss. Some names to watch are Will Wright, Kieran Morrison, Joshua Abe, and Trey Nyoni.
Here’s a look at Liverpool’s possible pre-season squad:
Goalkeepers: Giorgi Mamardashvili, Freddie Woodman, Armin Pecsi, Kornel Misciur, Harvey Davies.
Defenders: Joe Gomez, Jeremie Frimpong, Jeremy Jacquet, Giovanni Leoni, Milos Kerkez, Kostas Tsimikas, Mor Talla Ndiaye, Amara Nallo, Wellity Lucky, Calvin Ramsay, Luke Chambers, Owen Beck.
Midfielders: Dominik Szoboszlai, Curtis Jones, Harvey Elliott, Trey Nyoni, Stefan Bajcetic, James McConnell.
Forwards: Rio Ngumoha, Federico Chiesa, Will Wright, Jayden Danns, Lewis Koumas, Keyrol Figueroa, Kieran Morrison, Kaide Gordon, Joshua Abe.