One coach who has received a lot of praise this season is 41-year-old Andoni Iraola. After three years at Rayo Vallecano, the former Athletic Bilbao full-back joined Bournemouth last summer.
Bournemouth have had a good season and are 13th in the Premier League. The decision to sack Gary O'Neill and go to Iraola was not without controversy, and was compared to when Southampton sacked Nigel Adkins to hire Mauricio Pochettino in 2013. A decision that was criticized by many at the time, but which ultimately looked smart.
Iraola has the same agent as Xabi Alonso. He says he had a good relationship with incoming Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes.
– I've always said that it was probably the main reason why I made the important decision to come here. Anyway, it was an important cause, he says To Bournemouth Daily Echo.
-Very good at his job
Iraola will now have Hughes' assistant, Simon Francis, as the new sporting director. Hughes clearly had a big star at Vitality Stadium.
– He has been a huge help to me personally, along with the entire support system. I think he's very good at his job. Here he set everything up. The entire scouting department and the support that individual players receive when they get here. “It's an adaptation process that is a big help for the players and me as a coach,” says Airola.
-I'm very happy on his behalf, because I think this is a great opportunity for him. I wish him all the best. I'm sure he will do very well at Liverpool. Maybe it's a big change for him, but I think he's done a very good job here at Bournemouth. I hope he can continue what he did here at Liverpool.
Hughes will officially begin his job as Liverpool's sporting director on June 1, but he will likely start long before then. He is responsible for appointing Jurgen Klopp's successor to the technical director's chair.
“Infuriatingly humble internet trailblazer. Twitter buff. Beer nerd. Bacon scholar. Coffee practitioner.”
