“I’m convinced…” – Dominik Szoboszlai believes Iraola can do one thing at Liverpool this season | OneFootball

Dominik Szoboszlai has confidently declared his belief that Liverpool can put a miserable 2025/26 season firmly behind them in the upcoming campaign.

The Hungarian – who reportedly remains in talks over a potential new contract – was one of the few Reds players to embellish his reputation over the past year, with the champions of 12 months ago enduring a miserable Premier League title defence and just about managing to salvage fifth place.

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That massive decline cost Arne Slot his job as head coach, with Andoni Iraola quickly installed as his replacement, but the 25-year-old is convinced that the Spaniard will oversee a rapid improvement in 2026/27.

Szoboszlai confident Liverpool can ‘compete’ next season

In an interview with L’Equipe, Szoboszlai made a bullish declaration about how high Liverpool can aspire to finish in the upcoming campaign under their new boss, whilst also voicing his own determination to once again experience the joy of becoming a Premier League winner.

The Reds’ number 8 said: “I’m convinced we can compete, and I’m hopeful that with the new coach Andoni Iraola, we’ll be heading in the right direction.”

He added: “When I was a kid, I always dreamed of winning the Champions League, probably more than winning the Premier League; but now that I’ve had a taste of it, I absolutely want to win the Premier League again because it was so incredible in 2025.”

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We don’t expect a title challenge, but a big improvement is needed

Szoboszlai’s confident message is just what Liverpool fans will like to hear, although judgement will be reserved until his words are backed up by results on the pitch over the next few months.

Only the most wildly optimistic of Kopites would expect the Reds to win a second league title in three years in 2026/27, but supporters would be justified in demanding a significant improvement on the last campaign.

At a minimum, Iraola’s side need to be comfortably qualifying for the Champions League and not leaving it in doubt until the final day like they did last term. A prolonged run in Europe would also be desirable, along with a domestic trophy.

If Liverpool are to be among the contenders for the Premier League trophy next season, they’ll need Szoboszlai to replicate his consistently high standards of 2025/26, along with the team as a whole raising its collective level significantly from that campaign.

Let’s hope that the new boss can get off to a quick start at Anfield and inject more positivity around Anfield after a hugely chastening few months for the natives to endure.