Exclusive: “Without A Shadow Of A Doubt!” – Liverpool Legend Sammy Lee On ‘Great Fit’ Andoni Iraola | OneFootball

Few can boast the career and, indeed, connection to Liverpool that former Reds midfielder Sammy Lee has. The Scouser has also gone on to work alongside some of football’s most respected managers and coached at the very highest level of the game, including stints back at his beloved Anfield under Rafa Benitez, Gerard Houllier and Sir Kenny Dalglish. 

Now, with the new Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola in post, Lee was in a unique position to discuss the appointment of the 43-year-old, having also spent two years in the Basque region when playing for Spanish La Liga side Osasuna. 

In this exclusive interview, Lee shares his thoughts with Dan on Iraola’s background, the fit at Liverpool, the coaching staff and the likelihood of success…

“HE GETS IT” – Liverpool Legend Sammy Lee On Andoni Iraola Appointment

On Iraola’s upbringing: “They’re a very unique club, and what a club, what a club. And I really, really liken the city of Bilbao to our great city here, it’s built around shipbuilding, it’s industrial, the river runs through it, it’s a fantastic place to be now, as it was then, there are fantastic people, very proud people, very proud people, they’re proud of everything they do, whether it be growing asparagus or the best wine, every village has their own speciality, and they’re so, so proud of what they do, and they love life, but they’re very hard-working, they’ve got a fantastic work ethic, and it was a great time for me to be over there, although I was in Pamplona, which, it’s not San Sebastian, it’s not Bilbao, but it’s very, very close to the border on the Basque area, if not the Basque area, a lot of them consider themselves Basque, so to be honest, I got a great insight into the lifestyle of people over there, as I said, they’re very, very hard-working, very humble, and very, very proud in all what they produce, whether it be asparagus, or whether it be footballers, or whether it be football coaches now, they’re fantastic people.”

On the importance of football in the region: “It is there as well [like a religion], without a shadow of a doubt, and as I said, it’s such a huge part of the community, huge part, and they’re very proud of what they do, and don’t forget Bilbao Athletic, they have to be Basque to play for Bilbao. They’re very similar, and I can’t stress the similarities between our two cities and our two cultures more than anything. I think the cultures are very, very similar.”

On Andoni Iraola’s personality: “I think there’s no ego about him, from what I can gather, he’s very humble, like the Basque people are. He played on the youth side with Arteta and with Xabi Alonso; he’s been brought up the right way. Funny enough, he started off as a midfielder. I was a centre midfielder but ended up being right, similar to myself, but again got converted to a right-back. I think he was the captain of that Athletic team, which, honestly, has so much similarity. We went over to San Mames, which was the cathedral over there; they used to call it the Cathedral San Mames, and we beat them 1-0; they hadn’t been beaten in their own stadium for however long it was, and a wonderful, wonderful team, but for us to go over there and beat them in their own cathedral was a fantastic result. And it dented their pride, because as we said before, they’re passionate about football, they’re very proud of the football teams. So, yeah, it’s a great fit, I think.”

On the young coaching culture in Spain: “Back in our day, what we used to do as players, if you wanted to go into coaching, you basically waited until you retired before you took on your badges, if you felt you needed your badges. But over there, I was amazed, that’s where I think I got the kernel of really wanting to get into coaching. Because some of my colleagues, although they were playing in La Liga, were taking the coaching badges. It was a great insight for me, it was a lightbulb moment for me, and I thought, “Wow.” And again, times have changed, and thankfully, here as well, in our country, some of the players who want to go into coaching, they do take the coaching badges while they’re playing, while they’re in their careers. Which I think is a great thing, because you’re in situ, you’ve got all the facilities that you need to do your sessions, and your coaching, whatever. So everything’s there for you, and it was a great insight for me, and I say a lightbulb moment, and all these young guys, and you see them now, as you say, he’s 43, he’s at Bournemouth for two, three seasons, wasn’t he? He had a team before that, if I’m not mistaken, but he did. So he’s been coaching for six, seven years, so it shows, it illustrates the fact that he did take his coaching badges before he finished playing. Yeah, most definitely, and he was well set in his mind in terms of what was next for him, and like I say, it’s taken him to where he is now, which is at Liverpool Football Club, and that coaching culture seems to be somewhat ingrained in Spanish football.”

Darwin Nunez Is PERFECT For Andoni Iraola’s Liverpool | Director Of Football Challenge

On the style required: “For me, it’s all about pace and tempo. Pace and tempo with the ball and without the ball. That’ll dictate whether you call the press, but certainly passing the ball quicker, touch, pass and move, pass and move. It’s always been the Liverpool way. Now, I know the game has changed immeasurably, but I can guarantee you the best ones are the ones who move the ball quickly, go and support quickly, close people down quickly, pressurise people quickly, are able to run for 96, 97 minutes, able to run at high intensity. It’s not just about putting kilometres in, it’s about high intensity as well, because you can run all day with a canter, but at the end of the day, it’s about putting pressure on. And again, I’m talking about pressure with the ball and without the ball. People always talk about the high press, the high-powered press, which Jürgen partly adopted and partly Arne didn’t. One thing for me is about moving the ball quickly. Pace and tempo in possession, and pace and tempo out of possession. That’s all I want to see. We’ve got quality throughout the team, but one thing I was crying out for was move the ball quicker, move the ball quicker. Particularly if you’re going against a low block, the best is to move the ball quicker, because when you move the ball quicker, gaps will appear, and that’s when you can penetrate.

On the importance of a connection with the fanbase: “He gets what we want. So I think because we are unique as a fan base, we’ll give him the chance. And I think already he’s engaged with the people, and that’s part of the job. That’s crucial. It’s crucial. And again, I’m not saying the previous guy didn’t; other people can decide that. But one thing’s for sure, Jürgen did. I’m hoping, because he understands the area, because he understands the city, because he understands the wants of the people, how he understands the demands of the people, how he understands the passion of the football club, then I think there’ll be a great little synergy there. And I just tend to think, for me, our fans being our fans,  our fans are unique. And that’s why I plead with them to get behind this guy, give him the chance. I think already they like what they’re hearing so far, and I think that’ll only get bigger and better as the training sessions go on, they go into pre-season, the press conference, it’s huge that he engages our fan base. Without a shadow of a doubt.”

On bringing in his coaching staff: “It’s huge. He has to have these people in place who can be amongst him all the time, different facets of the team, different facets of the training facility. Because the biggest thing about it, we go back to the great Bill Shankly and Jürgen Klopp, they knew everybody in the facility. I think that’s crucial as well, that he engages with everybody, because everybody, everybody in the facility, everybody in the club, has a part to play, an important part to play in our success. So he’ll get that. But he can’t do that all by himself; he needs these guys. And trust is a massive element.” 

On Thiago or James Milner returning in a coaching capacity: “Maybe I’m being selfish, but I would. I don’t know Thiago very well. I know he’s a fantastic player, and I loved watching him. But I think Milly would be a great addition, if you like the indigenous one, just to help the new ones coming in, to bed in if you like. Also, I think the respect, I’m not saying Thiago hasn’t, because he’s got full respect as well. And I know Milly from a player when I was with England on the 21s, he’s a very demanding professional, which is great for me, because he tested me all the time, which I loved. And as long as you had the answers for him, it’d be great. I’d love something like that. I’d love something like Thiago in, but I’d certainly love something like Milly in because, as I say, he drives standards on and off the pitch. 

On the potential success: “I am so pleased with this signing, because for all the reasons we said before, I think he gets the ethos of the club, I think he gets the ethos of the city, and I think he gets the people, and that for me is a great starting point moving forward.”