Andoni Iraola makes stance on 83-goal star clear

Andoni Iraola makes stance on 83-goal star clear Liverpool's squad is still fairly thin. The Anfield outfit added four new players to their ranks this summer but, that still doesn't feel like it was enough to get them back to the top of the Premier League table. Indeed, they are unbeaten across all competitions at the moment but, that doesn't mean things will stay that way all season. Because of the Champions League registration rules, Andoni Iraola's starting squad for Europe's premium competition is even thinner. In fact, both Wataru Endo and Federico Chiesa have had to be left out of Liverpool's plans this term. Of course, this can change by the end of January but, for the first half of the campaign, the duo won't be able to feature. This is similar to what happened with Chiesa last season but, since nobody has been side-lined due to injury yet, it doesn't seem like the Italian will be able to get added to Liverpool's squad last-minute this time. But, for some such as Hugo Ekitike , it's a race against time for them to be back playing with Iraola now making his stance on some players more than clear. Andoni Iraola has confirmed what part Hugo Ekitike will play in Liverpool's Champions League campaign As mentioned, since the Champions League's registration rules are a bit stricter than the Premier League, some members of Liverpool's first team squad have had to miss out. However, one of the biggest shocks was the fact that both Ekitike and Conor Bradley were both included in Liverpool's squad . Both players are out of action at the moment with long-term injuries with no return date set in stone for either player just yet. Obviously, they're a massive miss for Liverpool and they'd probably do anything to be able to use them but for now, focusing on getting them back to 100 per cent is the main goal. But, when they were both included in the Reds' Champions League squad, most people thought that this meant they'd be back soon. However, after speaking to the media on Friday, Iraola has made it more than clear that this certainly isn't the case. "Ekitike is still far. There's a chance he could play in the last two games of the UCL opening stage in January, but it's too early to say," he said. "We have put him there as there's a hope and a realistic chance he could play." Federico Chiesa is clearly finished at Liverpool Chiesa, who has scored 83-goals throughout his career, could have been Richard Hughes' best-ever deal. The Italian only cost Liverpool around £10 million to bring through the Anfield doors with his main goal being to become Mohamed Salah 's back-up. However, during his first season with the club, he could barely play three games without getting injured and then, during his second, Arne Slot simply couldn't trust him. Despite all of this, fans still wanted him to do well with his song arguably one of the best to echo around L4. But, the fact that Ekitike may only be available for the final two Champions League league phase games and was still chosen over him proves where Iraola stands on his future. The last 18 months or so have been filled with potential rumours linking the Italian with a return to the Serie A and, if he's not chosen by Iraola for some of Liverpool's Premier League games, it feels like his time with the club could finally be up. If this is how things are going to end between Liverpool and Chiesa , it's obviously rather sad but, as they say, it is what it is.