Second best for 25 minutes, Iraola beats his old club with a half-time fix and an Isak tap-in.
The numbers
| Liverpool | AFC Bournemouth | |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 53.8% | 46.2% |
| Shots | 12 | 9 |
| On target | 3 | 2 |
| xG | 1.65 | 0.79 |
| Corners | 3 | 3 |
| Pass accuracy | 81% | 77.7% |
Result the chances deserved: Liverpool 58% / 24% / AFC Bournemouth 18% (Poisson).
Starting line-ups
Liverpool (4-2-3-1): Alisson, Araujo, Jacquet, Van Dijk, Kerkez, Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Gakpo, Wirtz, Barcola, Isak.
AFC Bournemouth (4-2-3-1): Petrović, Smith, Hill, Silva, Truffert, Adams, Scott, Rayan, Christie, Tavernier, Evanilson.
AFC Bournemouth subs: Brooks & Jebbison (75', Tavernier & Christie), Cook (76', Smith), Tóth & Gannon-Doak (88', Rayan & Adams). Head coach: Marco Rose. Line-ups and shapes from FotMob (both 4-2-3-1); WhoScored listed both as 4-3-3. Sub minutes from TNT Sports; NBC and LiveScore put the first Liverpool changes at 70-72' and FotMob has Isak off at 81'. Attendance 11,316.
Key moments, move by move
- After half-time Szoboszlai drops into a back three, so Araujo can push on and Gakpo can start inside, in the pocket behind Scott.
- Gakpo gets the ball on the right and drives down the line past defenders. Silva is pulled out wide to meet him.
- Gakpo works a cross into the box, where Barcola, Wirtz and Isak are all arriving against too few defenders.
- The ball comes off Wirtz (a slight deflection for Sky, a blocked shot for Opta) and Isak finishes from close range.
A half-time back three that set Gakpo loose
- The first 25 minutes: AFC Bournemouth's 4-2-3-1 marked mostly player to player. Evanilson and Christie kept Mac Allister and Szoboszlai in their cover shadows, and Tavernier and Rayan jumped onto Liverpool's full-backs (Coaches' Voice). Iraola said his team lacked "the intensity the game required", and Alisson's 18th-minute save from Evanilson's near-post flick kept it 0–0.
- Bournemouth went over the press. Against Liverpool's man-oriented press at goal kicks they played straight into Evanilson, with Tavernier and Christie dropping to collect the knockdowns (Coaches' Voice). They attacked Kerkez's side again and again through Rayan, and had more touches in Liverpool's box, 27 to 19 (FotMob).
- The fix: in the second half Szoboszlai rolled out of midfield to form a back three. Araujo could push high on the right and Gakpo drifted into the half-space on Scott's blind side. Twelve minutes after the restart Gakpo drove wide from there, Silva had to follow him, and three Liverpool attackers were waiting in the box (Coaches' Voice).
- Seeing it out: Nyoni and Muñoz came on at 72', with Gakpo moving to the left, then Gravenberch played as a No. 10 behind Nyoni and Mac Allister (LiveScore). Hill blocked a Gakpo pass meant for Isak on 70', Koumas shot straight at Petrović in stoppage time, and Liverpool kept a third straight league clean sheet (Opta).
Recreate it in FM26
Liverpool · Iraola's half-time back three frees Gakpo · 3-4-2-1Show cardHide card
Iraola's half-time back three frees Gakpo
| Pos | Player | In Possession | Out of Possession |
|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Alisson | Goalkeeper | Goalkeeper |
| RB | Araujo | Wing-Back | Full-Back |
| RCB | Jacquet | Ball-Playing Centre-Back | Stopping Centre-Back |
| LCB | Van Dijk | Ball-Playing Centre-Back | Covering Centre-Back |
| LB | Kerkez | Full-Back | Holding Full-Back |
| RDM | Szoboszlai | Half-Back | Pressing Defensive Midfielder |
| LDM | Mac Allister | Deep-Lying Playmaker | Screening Defensive Midfielder |
| RW | Gakpo | Half-Space Winger | Tracking Winger |
| AM | Wirtz | Advanced Playmaker | Attacking Midfielder |
| LW | Barcola | Inside Forward | Winger |
| ST | Isak | Centre Forward | Centre Forward |
Team instructions
In Possession
- Build-Up StrategyPlay Through Press
- Passing DirectnessMore Direct
- TempoHigher
- Progress ThroughRight
Out of Possession
- Line of EngagementHigh Press
- Trigger PressMore Often
- Defensive LineHigher
- Cross EngagementContest
The idea: Szoboszlai as a Half-Back drops out of the double pivot to make a back three, so Araujo can push on and Gakpo can start in the half-space behind the opposing midfield, then carry to the line. You need a right-sided midfielder who is happy defending in a back line and a wide forward who can both receive inside and cross.
What FM26 can't copy: Liverpool only found this shape after half-time, so in FM26 it works best as a second tactic you switch to, not a straight copy of the first 45 minutes.
Our reading of this match in FM26 terms, not an exported tactic file. Role names as in FM26.
What if? Replay it with a different plan
Our best alternative plan: Patient possession, Frimpong on at 72' (for Barcola). Use the second-half build-up (Szoboszlai dropping, Araujo high, Gakpo inside) from the first minute rather than rushing it forward, then bring Frimpong on at 72' to keep attacking the side of Bournemouth's defence that the goal came from. It moves Liverpool's win chance from 58% to 64% (xG 1.65–0.79 becomes 1.85–0.74). Try your own changes to formation, pressing, approach and substitutions.
The game-changer Liverpool needed
Jeremie Frimpong
Liverpool's winner came when Araujo pushed high on the right and Gakpo, a left-sided forward, came inside and then drove to the line. Frimpong does both jobs on the right naturally. From 72', with Gakpo moved to the left, he would have kept Truffert and Silva stretched on the side where the goal came from, and his recovery pace helps if Bournemouth break.
Antoine Semenyo
Liverpool had to build their best move by shifting Gakpo, a natural left-sider, onto the right. Semenyo played for Iraola at Bournemouth and is at his best running at full-backs from the right. He would have given Liverpool width and a shot on that side from the first minute, instead of only after the half-time change.
What the analysts said
“I was disappointed with the first 20, 25 minutes, I think we didn't start the game with the intensity the game required.”Andoni Iraola
“To win here is very difficult, I know it very well. Normally Bournemouth start really strong.”Andoni Iraola
“He has to help us to be closer to the box, to play in the opposition half and to have meaningful possession.”Andoni Iraola on Isak
“It was one error, but it was one error too many. We aren't getting points for playing well and having a good attitude.”Marco Rose
“We are not shocked really. We all know he's world class and we are really lucky to have him.”Alexander Isak on Alisson
Iraola didn't out-play his old club. He out-adjusted it.
The xG says 1.65 to 0.79 (FotMob, Opta), a comfortable away win. The first half says something else. For about 25 minutes AFC Bournemouth were the better side: long balls into Evanilson, Tavernier and Christie picking up the knockdowns, Rayan running at Kerkez. Over the match they had 27 touches in Liverpool's box to Liverpool's 19 in theirs. Alisson, FotMob's player of the match, kept it level with the save from Evanilson's flick. Iraola admitted it: he was disappointed with the intensity.
The winner was not luck. It came from a half-time change. Szoboszlai dropped to make a back three, which let Araujo push high and Gakpo come inside, into the pocket behind Scott. Bournemouth's man-oriented block then had to choose who followed whom. On 57 minutes Silva went wide to meet Gakpo, and Barcola, Wirtz and Isak had the box to themselves. Rose called it "one error". It was the error the new shape was built to force, and Iraola knows better than anyone how that block defends.
The limits are just as clear. Liverpool had 12 shots and three on target, and Sky's numbers show no big chance missed: the goal was the one clear opening they made count. That is why Iraola's public demand that Isak give them "meaningful possession" near the box matters. With Wirtz quiet until the break and Gakpo playing on his weaker side, Liverpool could not stay in Bournemouth's half long enough to build pressure. The defence is ahead of the attack: three league clean sheets in a row, with Jacquet settling beside Van Dijk.