Iraola's Ruthless Decisions at Liverpool: Chiesa and Endo Cut from Squad

Andoni Iraola has wasted no time laying down the law at Liverpool. Two big names, no Champions League.

Federico Chiesa and Wataru Endo have both been cut from the Reds’ 25-man squad for the 2026-27 competition, a brutal early marker from the new head coach ahead of their opener against Atletico Madrid on September 9.

Iraola’s first ruthless call

This isn’t about reputation. It’s about numbers and trust.

UEFA rules cap non-locally trained players on List A at 17. Iraola has chosen to spend those slots on £123 million signing Bradley Barcola, fellow summer arrival Victor Munoz, and even injured forward Hugo Ekitike. Chiesa and Endo didn’t just miss out. They were actively passed over.

The message is unmistakable: if you’re not central to the plan, you’re not on the plane.

Carragher: “They’re never going to kick a ball”

Jamie Carragher didn’t bother softening the blow.

Speaking on The Overlap, the former Liverpool defender questioned the very point of keeping the pair at Anfield under Iraola.

“Liverpool have got two players in the squad who are never going to play,” he said. “And there are all these quotas, you can only have 17 players and all that. They have got Chiesa and Endo. It’s like they are never going to kick a ball.”

He then turned the spotlight on the club’s decision not to cash in on Endo this summer.

“Endo should have been moved on,” Carragher added. “He has done great, a bit of a cult hero.”

Cult status, though, doesn’t win you a Champions League squad place.

Endo and Chiesa on the outside

Both players are tied down long term – Endo until 2027, Chiesa until 2028 – but their roles have steadily shrunk.

Endo’s influence faded sharply last season. He made just eight Premier League appearances and featured only once in the Champions League. For a senior midfielder, those are numbers that scream “backup,” not “indispensable.”

Chiesa’s story has been even more frustrating. His Liverpool career has been repeatedly interrupted by fitness issues, and the 28-year-old is again sidelined with a muscle problem. The current injury is not considered long term, yet Iraola still chose to register long-term absentees Conor Bradley and Giovanni Leoni ahead of a winger edging back towards fitness.

That choice cuts deep. It underlines where Chiesa now sits in the pecking order: on the margins, looking in.

Cups or nothing

Liverpool face Ipswich Town on Friday before the focus swings to Europe and that Anfield clash with Atletico. Inter and Fenerbahce lie in wait later in a demanding league phase that will test Iraola’s new-look squad from the outset.

Chiesa and Endo will watch all of it from the outside, their European ambitions parked until further notice.

For now, their stage is likely to be domestic cups and the odd league appearance, unless injuries rip through Iraola’s squad and force a permitted reshuffle later in the campaign.

Until that happens, two experienced internationals are left with a stark question: are they part of Liverpool’s future, or just waiting for the exit door to open?