There’s a new Liverpool FC head coach in town. Andoni Iraola is the new man at the helm. There are some familiar faces in the building for him to work with, including left-back Milos Kerkez, who was his left-back at Bournemouth before signing for Liverpool last summer.
Milos spoke about playing for Iraola again while at preseason training:
“I’m really happy they’re here. I think we had really great times together in Bournemouth and when I saw that he [Iraola] was coming, when I heard about it, I was obviously
really happy. I know him, I spent two years with them in Bournemouth.”
“They know me, I know them and I know that they can bring a lot to the club – especially Andoni with the playing style, with the energy and how he wants his team to play. I think it suits Liverpool and I think it’s going to be really exciting times ahead.”
“He’s a nice person, obviously. He is nice. He lets you know straightforward what he wants from you, then it’s up to you to do it. I mean, if you don’t do it, you’re not playing, simple as that. But he is good. Like I said, he lets you what you need to do for him.”
“He’s maybe not much of a talker, but he shows fully his emotions a lot, you can see on the sideline and everywhere that he’s really, really energetic. He is coming from Bilbao and you know their mentality is also like that, so like I say I think he’s a really perfect boss for Liverpool and how he wants his team to play.”
“We just have to make a good pre-season and obviously listen to him, listen to what he wants from us and I think the team is going to be in good shape.”
“I had great times with him [and] obviously he helped me a lot to improve. My first year when I came to Bournemouth, we always had the analysis, video analysis and everything. Him and the assistant Tommy [Elphick], Coops [Shaun Cooper] and Pablo [de la Torre], everyone helped me lot.”
“Then when I got going, my second year was obviously a lot better. I got adapted more so it’s all, of course, thanks to him.”
“He likes to play direct, high, front-foot, and I think that’s perfect also for me. So, I think not only me, I think a lot of players are going to like it. I think it’s going to be good.”
Milos was one of last season’s bright spots, progressing from early mistakes to becoming a very solid contributor. In Iraola, he has a coach who managed to bring out the best in him and got him PL Team of the Season honours that made Liverpool spend the money to get him. Hopefully, Kerkez can hit those heights again and teach the rest of the team how to play the Iraola way.
