Liverpool kept their flawless start to the Andoni Iraola era by edging out Wrexham 1‑0 in the second friendly of their 2026/27 pre‑season preparations. After a win over Sunderland in Nashville, the Reds travelled to the iconic Yankee Stadium in New York for a sterner test against a Wrexham side that had recently upset both Manchester United and Leeds United. The match began with Liverpool forced to reshuffle their back line when veteran defender Joe Gomez picked up an injury against Sunderland. Stand‑in captain Dominik Szoboszlai was pushed into a centre‑back role, but he still managed to influence the attack.
Early in the first half he found Harvey Elliott in space, and Elliott’s clever pass set up Josh Abe, whose strike was comfortably saved by former Liverpool custodian Danny Ward, who now guards Wrexham’s goal. At halftime Iraola made four changes, one of which introduced teenage prospect Rio Ngumoha.
The youngster immediately made his presence felt, driving forward into the heart of the Wrexham defence. His effort was partially deflected, but the ball looped over the line fifteen minutes from the final whistle, providing the only goal of the encounter and sealing a 1‑0 win for the visitors. Wrexham had a chance to equalise late on when striker Kieffer Moore found himself in a promising position inside the box.
However, he failed to convert, mis‑timing his shot and allowing the Liverpool defence to retain their clean sheet. The result meant Liverpool had now won both of their United States fixtures, a promising sign ahead of their upcoming league campaign. The squad will now head to Chicago for the final American friendly, where they will meet Leeds United on Sunday.
That match is expected to feature several high‑profile newcomers to the pre‑season schedule, including German star Florian Wirtz, Dutch midfielder Ryan Gravenberch and Swedish forward Alexander Isak, all of whom are slated to make their first appearances for the Reds this summer. In the post‑match press conference, Iraola admitted that his side still needed time to fully adapt to his tactical ideas. "Overall we were more solid than the other day," he said. "The pitch here is narrow and the space limited, but we had good spells.
Even though we scored more goals in the previous game, today we were more of a collective unit." He added that the team was not yet at the level he envisions. "We sometimes arrive too late in phases of play, but it is a step forward, especially compared with the first half against Sunderland. The second half will be a reference point for us. Slowly, I hope each game brings us closer to the style we want.
We are integrating a lot of young players now, and the senior squad members who have just started training with us need to be added so we can start the season in a strong position." Iraola also confirmed that the upcoming clash with Leeds will see some of Liverpool's biggest signings get their first minutes on the pitch. The trio of Wirtz, Gravenberch and Isak have already begun their individual pre‑season programmes in Chicago after being eliminated early from the World Cup, and they will be joined by the rest of the squad for the friendly. When asked whether fans could expect to see these newcomers, as well as recent acquisition Jeremy Jacquet, in action, the manager replied affirmatively: "Yes, my idea is for Ryan, for Florian, for Alex and even Jacquet to have their first minutes against Leeds.
We'll see how many minutes they can play, but we have to start slowly integrating the senior players who have had fewer training sessions. I think they should be ready on the weekend to get their first minutes." The schedule for the remainder of Liverpool's summer tour is as follows: August 2 – Liverpool vs Leeds in Chicago at 9 pm; August 9 – Liverpool vs Monaco back at Anfield at 2.30 pm; August 16 – Liverpool vs Como at Anfield at 6 pm.
The club also promoted a Super 6 competition offering a £250,000 prize, encouraging fans to enter for free. Overall, the New York victory reinforced Liverpool's early pre‑season momentum under Iraola. The narrow win highlighted both the defensive solidity the manager wants to instill and the need for further offensive fluidity. With the integration of new signings and the gradual return of senior players, the Reds appear to be on a promising trajectory as they prepare for the upcoming Premier League season.