Andoni Iraola tipped for reunion with key player | OneFootball

Andoni Iraola has already made his presence known at Liverpool by being one of the main driving forces behind Victor Munoz's Anfield switch.

Even though a deal was almost completed between Newcastle and the Spaniard, Munoz chose to join Liverpool instead.

This change of heart not only extended the Reds' transfer rivalry with the Magpies but also helped strengthen the Reds' squad in a position of need.

There are several more areas among Liverpool's squad that could do with upgrading this summer which is why having Iraola at the helm could be essential.

Because, if Arne Slot was still in charge, some players would have probably been put off by the way that the Anfield outfit played under the Dutchman.

And, since Iraola has coached some very decent players, links with them will always emerge but now, the Spaniard has actually been tipped to reunite with one of his key players at Liverpool.

Andoni Iraola could push Liverpool towards making a move for Fran Garcia

Liverpool's left-back situation is a bit of an interesting one.

Milos Kerkez is obviously going to be Iraola's first-choice, especially since the Spaniard knows how to get the best out of him due to the time they spent with one another in Bournemouth.

Andy Robertson, who was the Reds' back-up has now exited and joined Tottenham which begs the question, who's going to fill in that 2nd-choice role?

Kostas Tsimikas will obviously be returning but, since he had minimal game time with AS Roma, it's unclear whether he has what it takes to make the step back up to the Premier League.

This is why several links with left-backs have started to emerge with Spanish journalist Angel Garcia, while speaking to Redmen TV, even claiming that Iraola will want to bring his former player to Anfield.

"Fran García is going to leave Real Madrid this year. I was reading in many Spanish sports magazines that Mourinho does not want Fran García in his team this year. There are many teams really interested in signing him in Spain - like Betis - and even in Italy," he said.

"And some people told me that he was really important to Andoni Iraola many years ago at Rayo Vallecano. I think Andoni Iraola was the first manager who gave him the opportunity to play in La Liga.

"People told me: take into account that Fran García was a really important player for Andoni Iraola at Rayo Vallecano. And don't forget that Andoni Iraola was really in love with what Fran García brought to the game.

"So it is very possible that Andoni Iraola tries to sign Fran García, because Fran García knows exactly how Iraola thinks about football, and Iraola knows exactly what Fran García is able to give to the squad.

"The people I spoke to were pretty sure that Andoni Iraola is going to try to sign Fran García.

"I don't know exactly [how much he will cost], because the main issue for Real Madrid is trying to let Fran García leave without receiving a large compensation for cutting his contract.

"If Real Madrid realises that Liverpool wants to sign Fran García, maybe they could ask for somewhere between six and ten million euros. What I know is that Betis in Spain are really, really interested.

"But if we look at how Liverpool handled the situation with Víctor Muñoz, maybe everything could change in a matter of hours. Liverpool has the money to pay Real Madrid six, seven, eight, nine million euros — it's not a big amount of money for a Premier League club."

Fran Garcia would be an interesting signing for Liverpool

Fran Garcia is a 26-year-old left-back who's had a fair amount of playing time for Los Blancos this season.

The Spaniard has featured 23 times for the La Liga outfit and has played all across the left-hand side.

Despite being used in various areas of the pitch, his primary position is full-back and, with the way that Liverpool will probably be looking to play under Iraola, Garcia matches it perfectly.

In those 23 games he's only contributed to two goals but if he can return to his best form under Iraola, the Reds would have a huge talent on their hands.

The fact that Real Madrid will only want around €10m euros to prise him away from the Bernabeu means that, even if a deal is struck and he does poorly, Liverpool won't lose that much.