Andoni Iraola stance on Liverpool sensation revealed

Andoni Iraola stance on Liverpool sensation revealed Liverpool have a long way to go if they're wanting to start challenging for silverware again. At the moment, the Reds look nowhere near good enough to be able to add some more trophies to their cabinet with some of their players massively underperforming. Indeed, there are some who have stood out with their displays but, more often than not, Liverpool have looked like the second-best team in each game they've played in this term. These poor performances have forced fans to look towards the transfer market to try and get their club to add a new player or two to their ranks. And, as we edge closer to the window, Andoni Iraola's stance on certain players are now becoming obvious. Andoni Iraola wants to keep Ifeanyi Ndukwe at Levante until the end of the season During pre-season, the futures of many Liverpool academy players changed dramatically. Lewis Koumas, Trey Nyoni and James McConnell have all been handed regular roles by the Anfield outfit with Iraola really leaning on the Reds' academy ranks to bolster the depth among his squad. Another player who caught the eyes of many was Ifeanyi Ndukwe. The Austrian was brought in last summer for around £1 million and, to everyone's surprise, he was one of the Reds' best centre-backs in pre-season. This made fans believe that their defensive issues had been solved but, unfortunately, the 18-year-old didn't have enough points for a work permit to stay at the club. with the idea of bringing him back in the January transfer window. However, as per an update from journalist Eric Martin Gasulla, those aren't the wishes of Iraola anymore. "IFEANYI NDUKWE," he wrote . "Coach ANDONI IRAOLA is the main person behind wanting the center-back to finish the 2026-27 season with Levante UD. Even more so now that he's a starter. "As we reported weeks ago on Mundo Levante UD, Liverpool FC can cut the loan in JANUARY if they get the necessary workload points. But the granota club would receive financial compensation in that case." Liverpool are better off keeping Ifeanyi Ndukwe at Levante Although Ndukwe surprised everyone with his performances in pre-season , there's no chance of him replacing Virgil van Dijk for Jeremy Jacquet in Iraola's starting XI. And, even though he could be a better back-up option than Giovanni Leoni, Ronald Araujo and Joe Gomez, there's no benefit for the youngster to be at Liverpool if he's just going to sit on the bench. The fact that Ndukwe is only 18 years old and has already made himself a guaranteed starter for Levante is mightily impressive. So, taking him away from that environment and putting him on the bench would do him no good. That is, especially if Liverpool are wanting to use the Austrian as their Van Dijk successor in the future. With this in mind, lets hope that no injuries occur and that Ndukwe can stay put until the end of the current campaign.