Andoni Iraola's Champions League Debut as Liverpool Head Coach Against Atletico Madrid

Andoni Iraola steps into the Champions League spotlight as Liverpool head coach for the first time tonight – and he does it under the Anfield lights against a familiar European antagonist in Atletico Madrid.

The stage is big. The opponent is awkward. But recent history belongs to Liverpool.

They have won their last three meetings with Diego Simeone’s side, a sharp swing in a rivalry that once tilted the other way. Between 2008 and 2020, Liverpool managed just one win in six against Atletico. That dynamic has shifted. Now Simeone walks into a stadium where his team suddenly feel second best.

Gakpo ruled out as injury concern confirmed

All day, the question hung over Anfield: would Cody Gakpo make it?

The forward had missed team training on Tuesday. His absence was initially downplayed as precautionary, and there was quiet optimism he would still be involved. By the time the squad list dropped, that hope had gone. Gakpo was left out entirely.

Iraola later confirmed what many inside the club already suspected. The 27-year-old has a minor adductor problem picked up in last Friday’s win at Ipswich Town. Not a “proper injury”, as the head coach put it, but serious enough that Liverpool were unwilling to roll the dice in their Champions League opener.

Speaking to TNT Sports before kick-off, Iraola explained: “Cody finished the game the other day against Ipswich with some adductor issues. Both sides. Nothing specific. [It is] not a proper injury. But we didn’t want to risk him, and I think it makes sense he can rest and hope we can recover him. If it’s not for the weekend, it’s for the next one. But I think even for the weekend he has a chance.”

It is a cautious call, but one shaped by context. Gakpo has started the season in sharp form, with one goal and three assists in the Premier League already, including both assists in that 2-0 win at Ipswich. He was heavily linked with a move to Manchester City in the summer and has responded with the kind of output that underlines why Liverpool fought to keep him.

Tonight, though, he watches from the stands.

Barcola handed full debut on European night

If Gakpo’s absence is a blow, it also opens a door.

Bradley Barcola makes his first Liverpool start in the Champions League tie, thrown straight into the intensity of a league-phase opener at Anfield. Iraola makes two changes from the side that beat Ipswich, and Barcola is the headline call.

The France forward adds a different profile in the final third: direct, quick, and eager to attack his full-back. On a night when Atletico are likely to sit deep and scrap for territory, that kind of bravery on the ball matters.

Rio Ngumoha is the other player drafted into the XI, with Victor Munoz dropping to the bench. It is a subtle reshaping of the attack rather than a full reset, but it signals Iraola’s willingness to trust fresh legs and new ideas in a game of this magnitude.

The message is clear. No Gakpo, no panic. Liverpool will go after Atletico anyway.

Injury list still bites

Beyond Gakpo, Iraola’s squad is still carrying scars.

Hugo Ekitike remains a long-term absentee as he continues his recovery from the serious Achilles injury suffered in April. His absence has stretched Liverpool’s forward options for months and still offers no quick fix.

At the back, Joe Gomez is edging closer but not quite there. The defender has been out since pulling his hamstring in the opening minutes of Liverpool’s first pre-season game. He returned to full training on Tuesday, a significant step, but was not risked in the matchday squad against Atletico.

Conor Bradley is still sidelined with the knee injury he picked up in January. Giovanni Leoni is also out, continuing his rehabilitation from a knee problem sustained last September. Both remain longer-term considerations rather than immediate options.

In midfield, the picture is more about registration than fitness. Federico Chiesa has yet to feature this season and was left out of Liverpool’s Champions League squad altogether. Wataru Endo is unavailable for the same reason, limiting Iraola’s options for rotation in the centre of the pitch on European nights.

So the new head coach walks into his first Champions League game with a slightly patched-up group, a reshuffled front line, and a heavyweight opponent across the halfway line.

Anfield has seen this story before: injuries, doubts, a big European night. The question now is whether Iraola’s Liverpool can write the same kind of ending.