Andoni Iraola must take a gamble and unleash forgotten Liverpool star | OneFootball

Liverpool are expected to do a lot better this season than they did last term.

The Anfield outfit finished fifth in the Premier League last time around which led to Arne Slot being sacked.

The fact that the Reds did so bad just a season after winning the title is shocking and, even though the Dutchman thought his job was safe, the best thing for both parties was for him to leave.

Andoni Iraola was obviously the man chosen to take over from Slot and, even though Liverpool are unbeaten across all competitions, it still feels like more needs to come from them and their squad.

A few players have been favoured by the Spaniard but, now feels like the right time for him to move away from his usual picks and take a gamble on one of the Reds' more forgotten about players.

Federico Chiesa could be Liverpool's new striker with Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo now injured

Even though Liverpool's fans won't see their team in action until the 11th October, all of their players are still featuring for their countries.

At the moment, we're going through one of the longest mid-season international breaks ever with the UEFA Nations League taking priority over the domestic competitions.

And, while keeping the fitness of Liverpool's first-team squad up is important, there is always the risk of injuries occurring.

At the moment, the Reds have been fairly lucky with injuries but, even though the international break has only just got underway, the Reds have already suffered two injuries to a couple of their main players.

Cody Gakpo and Alexander Isak are the players in question. Each of them were injured a couple of days ago and, since Hugo Ekitike still isn't back from injury either, Iraola is a bit short on strikers.

Of course, Jayden Danns and Lewis Koumas could both be used as the Reds' number nine if needed but, in reality, this feels like the perfect opportunity for Federico Chiesa to finally make his mark.

His 2025-26 season has already been riddled with injuries and, even though his natural position is on the wing, his final chance to make a mark at Liverpool could be to get used as a striker.

He's clearly got the ability to put the ball into the back of the net and, even though he may have lost a little bit of his pace, with players such as Rio Ngumoha and Victor Munoz either side of him, it could end up working out rather well.

Federico Chiesa could be Liverpool's stop-gap solution until both players return

Liverpool without Gakpo and Isak among their starting XI sounds rather scary.

Of all the Reds' attackers, those two have easily been their best players.

In fact, Gakpo has arguably been Liverpool's best performer in general with his six goal contributions often earning Liverpool some much needed points.

However, if the Reds want to be seen as serious title contenders, they need to have multiple players who can play in each position to the same standard.

In some areas of Liverpool's squad, there are obvious players who first and second in line for certain positions but, any good team would be able to adapt and still win.

Chiesa's time with Liverpool so far has been far from ideal but, if Iraola can take a gamble and give Chiesa a run-out, he could finally prove his worth and potentially save his career.