'Excellent' Liverpool star could be unleashed by Andoni Iraola | OneFootball

Liverpool spent a hefty chunk of change last summer.

Arne Slot and Richard Hughes were at the helm of one of Liverpool's biggest ever transfer windows with the club spending over £450 million on trying to improve their ranks.

Most fans thought they'd quickly become the best team in the world and potentially win another trophy.

But, that didn't end up being the case and now, Slot has been relieved of his duties which has left more questions than answers.

That is, especially because Liverpool need to endure yet another rebuild and sign at least five new players to bolster their ranks.

Andoni Iraola is the person expected to take over from the Dutchman and, for one Liverpool player, it could be exactly what he needs to reach his full potential.

Milos Kerkez could become the Premier League's best left-back under Andoni Iraola

Iraola's time as Bournemouth's manager is going to be looked back on with fondness by the Cherries' fans for a long time.

The Spaniard took the relegation battlers all the way to Europe and gave them some of the best football they've ever seen at The Vitality.

Several members of their squad out-performed expectations with some of their players being sold to the biggest clubs in the world last summer.

was one of them, with the Hungarian joining Liverpool for £45 million.

And, while most people thought that the 21-year-old would be an upgrade on Andy Robertson, he actually felt like a downgrade with Slot's tactics failing to get the best out of him.

But now that Iraola could be the manager of Liverpool, it feels like Kerkez could get back to his best and become one of the Premier League's best left-backs again.

Why Andoni Iraola could help unleash Milos Kerkez

As mentioned, Kerkez's 2025-26 season hasn't been all that inspiring with the full-back getting just four goal contributions all season.

The Hungarian is an attacking-minded player and, at the start of the campaign, Slot was trying to force him next to Virgil van Dijk as another centre-back when in transition.

This obviously didn't end up working out and, even though Slot did end up letting him push forward a bit more, the damage was already done.

However, during his time as a Bournemouth player, Iraola gave Kerkez all the freedom in the world and he contributed to 10 goals across all competitions and was even named as the Premier League's best left-back during the 2024-25 season.

So, with this in mind, Iraola could be exactly what Kerkez needs to meet this full potential.

And, since Robertson is leaving and Kostas Tsimikas is half the player that the Hungarian is, the youngster is going to have to step up his game and prove his worth.

All of these things could help and, if Liverpool want to be competitive again, they'll need all their players in tip-top shape.