Andoni Iraola has an unusual method of communicating with his Liverpool players after matches, according to reports. The Basque manager, who took over from Premier League-winning Arne Slot in the off-season, reportedly does not speak to his squad in the dressing room after full-time.
Manager keeps post-match thoughts to himself
According to the Daily Mail, Iraola often waits 24 hours before addressing the squad at the training ground. The approach is designed to allow things to calm down before he shares his opinion, helping him stay grounded and approach his players in a measured way.
This method leaves players questioning what their manager made of the performance for longer than is orthodox. The approach was tested in the wake of Sunday's crushing defeat at home to Manchester City.
Defeat to Manchester City
Liverpool were battling hard against their rivals before Ryan Gravenberch saw red midway through the second half for a second yellow card. Down to 10 men, Liverpool were unable to cope with the electric City attack, with Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku and Rayan Cherki scoring.
Despite the loss, Iraola told BBC Sport at Anfield: "I think the first part is that we played two different games. One until the red card, and then after. For 60 minutes, the players were very good. The second game from the red card was where City were better than us.
"We conceded very little in the first half. We did a really good job. The second half, we were translating into chances. You learn a lot in games like today. I am very proud of my players. They put the work rate and everything in today. It's a loss and we didn't get anything from the performance but I liked it a lot."
What's next for Liverpool
Liverpool return to Champions League action in midweek when they travel to Austria to face LASK. After that, they face a potentially tricky trip to Brentford in the Premier League.
