Liverpool's Centre-Back Dilemma Ahead of St James’ Park Clash
A new Liverpool era begins on Tyneside this afternoon, and Andoni Iraola’s first big call could define the tone of his reign.
Everything circles back to one question: who stands next to Virgil van Dijk?
Centre-back dilemma for Iraola
With Joe Gomez ruled out after a pre-season injury and Giovanni Leoni already a long-term absentee, Iraola’s choices are brutally simple. It’s Araujo or Jeremy Jacquet.
Both were given a half each in the final friendly against Como last weekend. Jacquet made the headline moment, marking his Anfield bow with a goal just before the break, a sharp reminder of what he can offer in both boxes.
But the story of his summer is more complicated than a single finish.
Jacquet has spent most of pre-season chasing fitness rather than opponents, still working his way back after shoulder surgery in February during his time at Rennes. Six disrupted months, limited minutes, and a late push to get up to speed hardly scream “throw him straight into St James’ Park”.
That is where Araujo’s case hardens.
He has already felt the noise and hostility of St James’ Park, already shown he can survive one of the Premier League’s most unforgiving away days. For a manager taking charge of his first competitive game, in one of the league’s toughest arenas, reliability and familiarity tend to win arguments.
The pressure of the occasion, Newcastle’s problems over the summer or not, will be intense. Iraola may well decide this is not the moment to gamble on a defender still feeling his way back.
A largely settled XI
Beyond that central defensive call, the rest of the Liverpool side almost writes itself.
Alisson anchors the team in goal. Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez are set to flank the back line, giving Iraola the attacking width and energy he craves from his full-backs.
In midfield, Ryan Gravenberch is expected to line up alongside Dominik Szoboszlai. Trey Nyoni’s eye-catching pre-season has pushed him closer to the conversation, but not quite into the starting XI on a day like this.
Alexis Mac Allister is unlikely to be risked from the off. He has just 54 minutes of summer football in his legs after an extended post-World Cup break, and Iraola’s first competitive selection is no place to be carrying passengers, no matter how talented.
Curtis Jones is no longer part of the equation after his move to Inter Milan, trimming the midfield options and nudging Gravenberch and Szoboszlai into near-certainties.
New faces and missing signings
Out wide, the plan has been forced rather than sculpted.
Liverpool are still without new arrivals Bradley Barcola and Ibrahim Mbaye, with talks ongoing over Yankuba Minteh. Until that picture clears, Iraola turns to what he has: Rio Ngumoha and Cody Gakpo are expected to start on the flanks.
Between them, Florian Wirtz should operate as the No 10, tasked with stitching attacks together and feeding the lone striker in Iraola’s first Premier League line-up.
Victor Munoz, another of the summer arrivals, is likely to begin on the bench, waiting for a debut that could come if the game opens up late on.
Isak’s hostile homecoming
And leading the line, in the most intriguing subplot of the afternoon, is Alexander Isak.
This is his first return to St James’ Park since that seismic British record £125 million move last summer. The transfer saga still lingers on Tyneside, and the reception from the Newcastle support is expected to be anything but warm.
For Iraola, that edge might be useful. A fired-up Isak, jeered with every touch, could turn hostility into fuel. Or the weight of the occasion could drag him into the storm.
New manager. New system. New faces. Old cauldron.
Liverpool walk into St James’ Park knowing one decision at centre-back, one misstep in selection, could shape how this new era is remembered long after the final whistle.
