Chelsea declined to appoint Andoni Iraola as their next manager amid concerns over the drastic difference in tactics between the newly appointed Liverpool boss and the previous Blues coaches, a report has revealed.
Enzo Maresca’s departure in January sent Chelsea into a spiral, with Liam Rosenior’s nightmare stint in charge culminating in a hunt for yet another new manager this summer. After talks with Iraola, the London team ultimately turned to Xabi Alonso, who will start work on July 1.
The Athletic note that Chelsea officials were left impressed by Iraola, whose reputation surged over the past 12 months during his final season with Bournemouth, but the biggest concern was how the current squad might adjust to his tactics.
As a result, Chelsea decided to strike a deal for Alonso around two weeks before Liverpool found themselves in need of a new manager. This time around, there were no such concerns about Iraola’s suitability.
Why Iraola Suits Liverpool More Than Chelsea
Nobody is doubting Iraola’s Premier League pedigree, and the fact he built a team that finished comfortably above Chelsea will not have been lost on Blues officials. This is a manager who clearly knows how to mold a successful squad in England’s top flight.
Chelsea did not have concerns about the specifics of Iraola’s tactics, but rather the drastic difference between the way the new Liverpool boss sees the game and the approach favored by those in the Stamford Bridge locker room.
Under Maresca, and during the brief tenure of Rosenior, Chelsea focused on a possession-based style of soccer, prioritizing passing and positional dominance to try and suffocate opponents and pick through defenses. Whether they were successful in doing so is an entirely different matter.
That is the preferred approach of those in charge at Stamford Bridge, who felt Iraola simply was not the right fit. At Bournemouth, he built a high-energy, aggressive side that thrived on pressing and moving the ball with electric speed—two very different sides of the spectrum.
Iraola’s methods sound like a bad fit for Chelsea but, crucially, they sound almost perfect for Liverpool, who do not want to adopt the same tactical approach to the Blues.
Former Reds manager Jürgen Klopp introduced what became known as a “heavy metal” approach that focused on—you guessed it—energy, pressing and running opponents into the ground. If Klopp’s Liverpool side lost the ball, they were challenged to get it back immediately and turn a counter into a sight of goal as soon as possible.
Liverpool steered away from that approach under Arne Slot, whose title-winning tenure crumbled to the ground with a parting message from Mohamed Salah. The Egyptian, a pillar of the Klopp era, went public on social media calling for the return of “heavy metal” tactics, with a number of players showing their support.
Players want that style of play. The fans and the owners all want it back as well. On paper, Iraola may be exactly the right manager for the job.
Liverpool have got their “heavy metal” frontman in Iraola, while Chelsea have found their pass-first tactician in Alonso. This could be one of very few examples in soccer in which everybody actually ends up as winners.
