Liverpool’s summer transfer activity may come as a surprise to many, as the club actually outspent its previous campaign by more than £200 million. Despite this sizable outlay, Andoni Iraola’s first window in charge leaves fans and pundits with more doubts than reassurance about the shape of his squad.
Jamie Carragher summed up the prevailing sentiment on Sky Sports, noting, “It does not look like a balanced squad. Liverpool are short in the full‑back areas and probably a midfield player as well.” His observation cuts to the heart of the issue, even after the club splashed £123 million to bring Bradley Barcola from Paris Saint‑Germain into Anfield. Barcola’s signing, while impressive on paper, underscores the same structural problem that has plagued Liverpool for months: a lack of equilibrium across the pitch.
The Reds lost one of the Premier League’s most prolific left‑footed right‑wingers in Mohamed Salah, and their response appears to be a heavy‑handed focus on the opposite flank, creating a lopsided attacking profile. Carragher elaborated, “Liverpool have not got a real out‑and‑out right‑sided attacker. We have not got anybody with a left foot on that right side, like Mo Salah.
I am disappointed. I am not quite sure what we are going to do on that right wing right now.” The comment highlights a genuine gap in the squad’s ability to replicate Salah’s unique blend of pace, power and left‑footed precision on the right. Barcola is a versatile player, capable of operating across several positions, but the magnitude of his fee suggests he will be expected to perform in his natural role – predominantly on the left. Deploying him on the right would be a stretch, especially when Cody Gakpo has already been occupying the left wing, a slot previously filled by Florian Wirtz and Hugo Ekitike during their respective spells at Liverpool.
Other potential solutions, such as Rio Ngumoha, who broke through on the left last season, or Victor Muñoz, a left‑winger signed after a single top‑flight campaign, only add to the confusion. None of these options provide a clear answer to the right‑wing vacancy left by Salah’s departure. While the recruitment missteps are noteworthy, they are not yet catastrophic.
The bigger worry for supporters lies in the glaring holes elsewhere in the team, suggesting a squad that is over‑stocked in some areas but severely lacking in others. Take the full‑back situation, for example. When Jeremie Frimpong arrived last summer, Liverpool made it clear he was not intended to replace Trent Alexander‑Arnold at right‑back.
Yet, in the opening two league fixtures, Frimpong has been thrust into that very role, covering for an injured Conor Bradley. The club has also considered using Dominik Szoboszlai as a stop‑gap, but shifting a midfielder into a defensive wing‑back position is far from ideal, especially given Iraola’s system, which relies heavily on full‑backs providing width and speed. Frimpong and Milos Kerkez have already featured among the Premier League’s top three sprint performers this season, a testament to the high‑tempo demands placed on Liverpool’s wide defenders. The only player ahead of them in the sprint rankings is Adrien Truffert, who currently stars for Bournemouth under Iraola’s former management.
This emphasis on rapid wing‑back play is a cornerstone of Iraola’s tactical philosophy. Comparing Liverpool’s average player positions in the first two matches of the current season with those from the title‑winning campaign under Arne Slot reveals a stark contrast. In Slot’s side, full‑backs surged forward in unison, creating overloads while midfielders covered the space left behind.
Liverpool’s recent games have shown the full‑backs pushing high while the centre‑backs sit deeper, leaving a vacuum in the middle of the park. This structural imbalance could prove problematic. Ryan Gravenberch, who was instrumental in Slot’s title triumph, now finds himself in a midfield that lacks the physical presence once provided by Alexis Mac Allister. With Mac Allister’s decline in stamina and intensity over the past 18 months, Iraola may struggle to shield the defence against swift counter‑attacks.
Moreover, it is unclear whether Iraola intends to employ a traditional holding midfielder. At Bournemouth, his teams were encouraged to press aggressively, with players like Tyler Adams stating, “We believe we will win the ball high up the field.” This high‑press approach demands a midfield capable of both winning duels and covering the spaces left by advanced full‑backs.
Carragher has already voiced his concerns, saying, “I do not believe that midfield can function with the personnel in there. For me, it does not work.
And it is not just about personnel, it is the structure the manager is asking for.” His criticism was echoed during Liverpool’s opening Premier League match, where the defence was exposed within the first five minutes. With full‑backs pushing high and centre‑backs sitting back, there was no midfielder to bridge the gap, allowing Newcastle United to exploit the space and score.
Virgil van Dijk’s tendency to sit deeper, combined with the high‑line full‑backs, creates a recurring vulnerability that is unlikely to disappear without tactical adjustments. Consequently, Iraola now oversees the most expensive Liverpool squad ever assembled, yet it also appears to be the most unbalanced in a decade.
Finding a solution may require compromises beyond the transfer market. Carragher suggested, “You do not want to lose the offensive side, the fluidity, the arrivals with numbers, but obviously we were punished the other day, especially in the first goal. We did not do a proper lockdown.
But there is a balance. We cannot go from one way where we send a lot of people forward to keeping everyone back so we do not arrive with numbers.” He continued, “I do not want to tell Ryan Gravenberch not to carry the ball or arrive in the box. It is a matter of identifying the situation.
You cannot be with the joystick every time controlling the player. There are players that are very good at smelling the danger. ‘I cannot risk going now.
I think I have to stay.’ Recognising those situations is the job.” In the short term, a series of high‑scoring draws may be an acceptable outcome for this Liverpool side. Whether their attacking strengths will outweigh the defensive frailties remains to be seen. At present, the team is undeniably exciting, but it is also unmistakably imperfect and imbalanced, a paradox that will define their season ahead.