Iraola: Isak will produce the numbers as Gakpo earns full backing at Liverpool

Iraola backs Isak and Gakpo in latest Liverpool squad remarks

Andoni Iraola has given Liverpool supporters a direct read on two of his attackers.

Fabrizio Romano relayed Iraola’s comments on Saturday. On Alexander Isak, the manager said: “He’s a massive player for us… he’s going to produce the numbers.” He added that his “fight with Alex is how he helps the team in other things.” The message was not a result forecast. It was a public confirmation that Isak remains central to how Liverpool are being set up.

He’s a massive player for us… he’s going to produce the numbers. My fight with Alex is how he helps the team in other things.— Andoni Iraola on Alexander Isak, via Fabrizio Romano

Iraola was equally plain on Cody Gakpo. “I have no doubt with Cody. He’s been very good all of pre-season,” he said. “He has started very well this season… he finished the game as number 9 to help us close the game and it’s good to have him.” That last detail matters: Gakpo has already been used through the middle late in a match, not only wide.

Together the two remarks answer the question supporters ask before every match: who is in the manager’s trust circle. Iraola did not list absentees in these clips. He did not discuss future scorelines. He named Isak as a volume player whose off-ball work is still being coached, and he named Gakpo as a pre-season and early-season plus who can finish a game at centre-forward.

Liverpool’s attack is being talked about in present tense by the head coach, with both Isak and Gakpo explicitly backed. Those comments are the latest official word on two names that shape how the team looks.

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