Iraola stresses urgency as Liverpool prepares for Premier League
The Guardian Sport • 2 min read • Latest: Aug 1, 2026, 3:25 PM
Last updated Aug 1, 2026

Liverpool's new head coach Andoni Iraola is focusing on rapid improvements as the team trains in Chicago ahead of a friendly against Leeds. With the Premier League season commencing in three weeks, Iraola is prioritizing defensive reinforcement due to injuries affecting the squad. His training sessions emphasize speed and efficiency, reflecting the urgency to finalize preparations before the season begins. The friendly match at Soldier Field Stadium is set to conclude the U.S. pre-season tour.
- •Liverpool holds open training sessions in Chicago during pre-season.
- •Iraola emphasizes speed and efficiency in training drills.
- •Team faces Leeds in a friendly at Soldier Field Stadium.
- •Premier League season starts in three weeks.
- •Injuries have raised concerns about defensive cover.
- 3:25 PMThe Guardian Sport — Faster, faster: Iraola in a rush to plug Liverpool gaps before Premier League starts
"New head coach is in a race against time to utilise the transfer market with defensive cover vital as injuries hamper their US pre-season tour “Faster, faster,” bellowed Andoni Iraola throughout the open training session Liverpool held in Chicago on Friday. His first pre-season tour as Liverpool head coach ends at the city’s famous Soldier Field Stadium on Sunday, with a friendly against Leeds, and “faster, faster” could apply to all aspects of the club’s preparations for a new Premier League campaign that begins in three weeks’ time. Iraola was in his element as he immersed himself at the centre of every training drill that Liverpool performed at Chicago Fire’s Endeavor Health Performance Center, their base for the past two weeks in the US. “Faster, faster” was the new head coach’s instruction to his players as three teams of seven worked on their pressing games. He also shouted it when they walked over to a different pitch, recently vacated by Robert Lewandowski and his new Chicago Fire teammates, to work on offensive and defensive set-piece routines. Sprints were demanded following every rondo. Continue reading...
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