Liverpool fans worry Andoni Iraola ‘might not stick around’ after strange call against LASK
Liverpool fans were quite surprised by a big choice Andoni Iraola made during their Champions League match against LASK. This was Iraola’s second game in charge of Liverpool since taking over at Anfield this summer. He had previously led the team to a win over Atlético Madrid in Europe’s top club competition.
Iraola couldn’t use injured players Cody Gakpo, Dominik Szoboszlai, and Alexander Isak for the game. This meant he had to keep Florian Wirtz, who’s been under pressure, in the starting lineup. New signing Bradley Barcola also got the chance to play at the Raiffeisen Arena.
Iraola changed four players from the team that lost 3-0 to Manchester City on October 11. Jeremie Frimpong, Trey Nyoni, Rio Ngumoha, and Kostas Tsimikas all came into the starting XI. Virgil van Dijk was rested, and Victor Munoz, Milos Kerkez, and Alexis Mac Allister were on the bench.
The most surprising decision was making Kostas Tsimikas captain for the night. The Greek player had only made one brief substitute appearance this season before this game, after spending last season on loan at Roma. Many Liverpool fans didn’t like this choice and thought goalkeeper Alisson should have been captain while Van Dijk was out. Several fans shared their opinions on X (formerly Twitter).
One fan said, “Tsimikas as captain in a Champions League game is a real shock. If he’s the only option, I’d rather no one wear the armband.” Another joked, “Kostas Tsimikas as Liverpool captain in a big game? I hope Richard Hughes steps on LEGO.” A third wondered why Tsimikas was captain instead of someone like Gravenberch, suggesting this shows how weak the team is due to injuries. Others pointed out Tsimikas was loaned out last season and saw his captaincy as a sign of poor squad building over recent years. Some even said this decision might mean Iraola won’t stay long at Liverpool.
Before the season, Iraola explained why Alisson wouldn’t be captain if Van Dijk wasn’t playing. He said, “The captains will be Virgil, Alisson, Joe Gomez, and Dom Szoboszlai. But I told Alisson he wouldn’t wear the armband because of new rules. If a goalkeeper is captain, the referee has to explain decisions to all the captains during the game, which can get complicated. I had a season with Neto as captain at Bournemouth, and it was tough to keep changing captains. So, we wanted Alisson to feel valued, but the new rules make it hard for a goalkeeper to be captain.”
Despite some doubts, Tsimikas helped the team by assisting Ronald Araujo’s goal. Barcola also scored his first two goals for Liverpool in the first half. Liverpool will play Brentford away on October 17.