Liverpool's Injury Struggles: Iraola's First Game
Andoni Iraola walks into Anfield as Liverpool head coach for a competitive game for the first time on Sunday – and he does so with a squad already stretched by injury.
Liverpool open their Premier League campaign against Newcastle United with several key figures missing for the long term, a reality that has shaped both pre-season and selection plans. Recruitment has been relatively quiet, so the same core group has carried the load through the summer.
One of those is Alexander Isak. Back from a strong World Cup with Sweden, the 26-year-old has featured heavily in recent friendlies and looked sharp, but Liverpool are still managing him carefully after the fitness problems that dogged his first season at the club. With Hugo Ekitike out for months, Isak will shoulder a huge share of the attacking burden in the opening phase of the campaign.
At the other end of the pitch, the defensive options have been hit hard.
Joe Gomez: “Some weeks off”
Joe Gomez’s setback came early and abruptly. Ten minutes into a pre-season friendly against Sunderland last month, he was forced off, and Iraola has since confirmed it is a muscle problem that rules him out of the start of the season.
“Joe will be some weeks off. It's a muscle injury... it is difficult to say [how long], but normally, I always put myself as one month,” Iraola explained. “It's not massive, it's a normal muscle injury, [but] I think it's going to be impossible to have him for the start of the season because we are not so far [away]. It shouldn't be a lot more.”
Liverpool hope to have Gomez back around early September, with the away trip to Ipswich on Friday, September 4, viewed as a realistic target.
Alexander Isak: central to the plan
Isak has started Liverpool’s last three friendlies and, on the surface, looks injury-free. The concern is not about a specific issue but about keeping him at peak condition after his previous fitness troubles.
Iraola is clear about his importance.
“I think the same as others, an important player for us, in a very good place. Training every day, adding minutes, played a good World Cup with Sweden, fitness levels.
“I want to keep him there as much as we can. We know his level, he will score the goals. He will give us a lot of things. My fight with him, the instructions, is off the ball. He wants to score but I try not to judge the strikers if they have or haven't scored.”
With Liverpool playing roughly once a week in the early weeks, the schedule should help. The plan is simple: keep Isak fit, keep him firing, and hope he carries the attack while others recover.
Hugo Ekitike: long road back
Hugo Ekitike’s situation is more severe. The forward ruptured his Achilles in April and remains a long-term absentee. Iraola’s update in July underlined the scale of the challenge facing the Frenchman.
“In terms of order, I think the closest one to returning is Leoni. After will be Conor and Hugo, but especially the last two are still way off. We are talking about months and still a lot of time out.”
Liverpool do not expect Ekitike to be available until around November or December. Until then, Iraola must build an attack that can cope without him.
Conor Bradley: parallel timeline
Conor Bradley’s injury actually came before Ekitike’s, yet the two are likely to return around the same period. The defender has missed most of 2026 with a serious knee problem and remains some distance from a comeback.
Iraola grouped Bradley and Ekitike together in his recovery rundown.
“In terms of order, I think the closest one to returning is Leoni. After will be Conor and Hugo, but especially the last two are still way off. We are talking about months and still a lot of time out.”
The expectation is that Bradley, like Ekitike, will be looking at a November or December return, adding depth to positions that currently look thin.
Giovanni Leoni: the closest, but still waiting
Giovanni Leoni is the nearest of the long-term absentees to a return, yet his story is one of patience and frustration. The defender has been out with an ACL injury and is on course to miss roughly a full year of football.
Again, Iraola set out the order of comebacks clearly.
“In terms of order, I think the closest one to returning is Leoni. After will be Conor and Hugo, but especially the last two are still way off. We are talking about months and still a lot of time out.”
Leoni is expected to rejoin the group before Bradley and Ekitike, offering much-needed reinforcement once he proves his fitness.
So Iraola’s first competitive team sheet as Liverpool boss will be shaped as much by the treatment room as the training pitch. Isak will lead the line, Gomez watches on, and the trio of Leoni, Bradley and Ekitike work through the slow grind of rehabilitation.
The question now is simple: can this trimmed squad carry Liverpool through the early months until the cavalry finally returns?
