Andoni Iraola's Key Decisions at Liverpool: Goalkeeper and Centre-Back Challenges
Andoni Iraola has barely had time to find his parking space at the AXA Training Centre, but the size of his first decisions is already clear. Liverpool’s new head coach walks into a club where the goalkeeping and centre-back departments could define his opening year – and two familiar faces at Brentford are being pushed firmly into his eyeline.
Alisson’s future, Kelleher’s shadow
Alisson Becker remains the pillar of Liverpool’s recent success, yet his name keeps circling in the same sentence as Juventus. Liverpool triggered their option earlier this year to extend the Brazilian’s contract to the end of next season, and the club’s stance has been consistent: they want him to stay.
Reports in Brazil now point to Alisson resisting Juventus and committing to at least one more year at Anfield. That would steady one part of the picture. It complicates another.
Giorgi Mamardashvili, the Georgia international who made 20 appearances this season, sits in the middle of that uncertainty. Claims from Italy suggest his representatives have offered him on loan, a sign that Liverpool’s goalkeeping hierarchy is far from settled behind Alisson.
Into that uncertainty steps a familiar name: Caoimhin Kelleher.
Sold to Brentford a year ago for an initial £12.5m, Kelleher left Anfield in search of what he could never quite secure under Jürgen Klopp – a guaranteed starting role. At Brentford, he found it and flourished. Week after week, he justified his decision to leave, proving he is far more than a dependable cup keeper.
His form has been strong enough to spark talk of a return.
Former Republic of Ireland, Chelsea and Aston Villa midfielder Andy Townsend believes Kelleher has outgrown his current surroundings.
“I think he's a very reliable goalkeeper,” Townsend said. “He's developed into someone that I could see a bigger club than Brentford coming to take. When I look at Chelsea's goalie (Robert Sanchez), I don't think he even comes close to Caoimhin Kelleher.
“Brentford know they've got a good one, but it's got to be a bigger club. Brentford had a good season, but it's got to be a club like Liverpool or Chelsea. I remain convinced that he could do that. He doesn't want to go anywhere now where he isn't the number one, he's shown he can handle that.”
That is the crux. Kelleher, now Ireland’s undisputed number one, no longer wants to be the understudy.
“The last thing he wants to do is go to a club like Liverpool and find himself playing only 10 or 15 games a season. He's done that already,” Townsend added. “If he goes anywhere, he wants to go in as a number one.
“I could totally see him going to Newcastle and being number one there, or Chelsea. If Alisson does decide to leave Liverpool, they could do a lot worse than Kelleher. They know him very well and whenever he played for Liverpool, he was always very dependable.”
For Iraola, the equation is ruthless. If Alisson stays, any move for Kelleher would require a promise Liverpool have never given him before. If Alisson goes, the club’s former understudy suddenly looks like a logical, ready-made successor.
Centre-back conundrum and a Brentford leader
The goalkeeper debate is only one item in Iraola’s in-tray. The centre of Liverpool’s defence demands just as much attention.
Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez stand as the only senior centre-backs following the departure of Ibrahima Konate. Two highly regarded youngsters, Jeremy Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni, sit behind them, but both are working their way back from serious injuries. Trusting them as primary cover would be a major gamble for a new head coach tasked with keeping Liverpool competitive on multiple fronts.
That is where another Brentford player enters the conversation: Nathan Collins.
The Brentford captain has quietly put together an impressive season, and Townsend believes the 23-year-old Republic of Ireland international is ready to climb.
“He's done really well, Nathan Collins,” Townsend told OLBG. “I know that Spurs have just signed (Marcos) Senesi from Bournemouth. I think Nathan Collins would have been a good fit for them.
“A boy playing in London, going to another London club, that can help. I think he could be a very talented centre-half. He had too many mistakes in him 18 months ago, but he seems to have eradicated a lot of that. And he's a tall lad, he's quick enough, and he can play. So I think he's ready for an opportunity now to go and show that he can go up a notch. I think he can do it, I really do.”
Collins has long been viewed as a defender with tools: height, mobility, comfort on the ball. The question was always whether he could cut out the errors.
Townsend believes that corner has been turned.
“I said a couple of years ago he was a little bit soft with his defensive work, giving away easy goals. I think now he's got better in that respect. There is a more ruthless element to what he's doing defensively now, he's a bit more solid.
“Because of that, I think certainly there's a number of clubs that could do with a player like him and would benefit.
“But whether Liverpool will be that and whether they would pay Brentford the sort of money they would want, I'm not sure, that is the only concern. But I think Nathan's got a lot of ability.”
For Liverpool, Collins would tick several boxes: Premier League experience, leadership at club and international level, and the profile to grow under a coach like Iraola, who demands aggression and bravery from his back line. The sticking point, as Townsend notes, is simple: price.
Iraola’s early crossroads
So Iraola steps into his two-year deal with Liverpool facing two big questions that both point towards Brentford.
Does he plan for a future without Alisson and turn back to Kelleher, the one that got away? And in front of whichever goalkeeper he chooses, does he push the club to invest heavily in Collins as the next pillar of Liverpool’s defence?
The answers will say plenty about how bold Liverpool are prepared to be in this new era – and how quickly Iraola intends to put his own stamp on a squad still built in the image of what came before.
