Andoni Iraola defended his decision to start Bradley Barcola as a striker as Liverpool lost 3-2 to Fenerbahce in the Champions League. Barcola began in the unfamiliar central role before moving out to the right wing, but the France international was subdued throughout as the Reds suffered their first defeat of their group-stage campaign.
Match Recap: Nyoni and Isak Goals Not Enough
Trey Nyoni gave Liverpool the lead before Mason Greenwood's free-kick took a deflection off Jeremy Jacquet to wrong-foot goalkeeper Alisson Becker. Alexander Isak, introduced as a substitute in the second half, headed the Reds into the lead with his first touch, but two goals in six minutes from Archie Brown and Vedat Muriqi sealed the win for the home side.
Iraola Explains Barcola Selection
After the loss, Iraola explained why he opted to pick £123m winger Barcola up top on a night when top scorer Isak and Cody Gakpo were both available for selection. "I think we put Victor (Munoz) and Rio (Ngumoha) (on the wings), that they were more fresh," the Liverpool head coach said. "We thought also that for Alex it was maybe good to play 30 minutes, not more."
"And we wanted to try Bradley. We tried Cody in the past week against Chelsea. We wanted to try Bradley. We thought it would work well because I think Bradley, in terms of speed, the match-ups could be good for him. He hasn't found the position to have the opposition. He has been better when he has played outside wide. And then obviously with Cody, with Alex, I think we've been more dangerous."
Rotation Policy and Next Fixture
Iraola, who made five changes in total, added: "We have done this not just today, we have done it all season. All the games midweek we have been changing four or five as it's impossible to retain the starting XI. I trust the squad to sustain the level and I don't think it is the main reason why we lost. We have to look more at how we conceded the goals the reason we didn't win."
The Reds return to action on Sunday when they face Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park in their final Premier League match before the international break.
