Gomez injury overshadows Liverpool's winning start under Iraola

Liverpool began the Andoni Iraola era with a 4-2 win over Sunderland, but Joe Gomez’s early injury was the main concern. The match still offered positives, with Kieran Morrison, Dominik Szoboszlai, Federico Chiesa and Lewis Koumas all scoring.

The bigger worry is at centre-back. With Virgil van Dijk still away after the World Cup, Liverpool were forced to rely on two 18-year-olds, Mor Talla Ndiaye and Ifeanyi Ndukwe, while Jeremy Jacquet was being eased back and Giovanni Leoni remains unavailable. Iraola had already warned the squad was thin defensively, and Gomez’s exit only sharpened that issue.

There were bright moments in attack. Morrison impressed on the right, Elliott created the opener, Szoboszlai showed his quality from distance and Chiesa and Koumas finished the job. But Liverpool also conceded too easily at times, which showed there is still plenty to refine despite the result.

The immediate takeaway is simple: Liverpool have goals and energy, but their defensive depth is a real problem. With more established players still to join training, the next few friendlies should give a clearer picture of how quickly Iraola can tighten things up.