Andoni Iraola told two positions Liverpool must strengthen after Bradley Barcola transfer

Liverpool is on the verge of snapping up winger Bradley Barcola from Paris Saint-Germain but the Premier League giants need reinforcements in other areas of their squad.

Andoni Iraola has been told he needs to bolster his squad before the end of the transfer window - even beyond the signing of Bradley Barcola.

The French winger has reportedly agreed a switch to Anfield following months of speculation and negotiations between clubs. It is a deal set to cost the Reds around $163million with $136m of that number guaranteed to his current side.

But the expected arrival of the 23-year-old cannot be the final item of business the head coach secures if he wants to seriously compete on all fronts this season. That is the view of former defender Stephen Warnock who insists there are a handful of positions on the pitch which need strengthened before the window slams shut in five days.

Jamie Carragher previously admitted confusion at the signing of Barcola while right-wing, in his mind, should be the priority. For Warnock there are other positions that should take precedence for Iraola and that begins with the defense.

"I think they still need a right-back to compete in that position," Warnock told Rekatochklart.com. Conor Bradley is still not fully fit. I think at centre-half, they're probably covered now with (Jeremy) Jacquet and (Ronald) Araujo, and you've got (Gio) Leoni to come back in a couple of months' time. It seems like he's getting integrated back.

"But I think you need a specialist right-back.

“So I do think they need a few players. I think Liverpool were light in midfield last year, even with four midfielders. It looked like they were really struggling with the amount of football that they were playing."

As mentioned by Warnock, Bradley has been ruled out of action until perhaps as late as November which leaves Liverpool short. They also do not have depth in the centre of midfield and that could cause an issue. But the lack of strength in the squad is not necessarily only a personnel issue.

Injuries have also played their part and the Reds are missing some key players as well as some squad members who would offer cover.

Warnock reckons the injury issues could potentially stem from a mentality issue at Anfield. And he says that also has to be fixed.

"I think it was an issue last season under Arne Slot," he added. "I think the only thing that surprises me is that with a pre-season, you think you'd be able to get that back into the players.

"So whether that's a case of players just not being ready after coming back from the World Cup, or whether it's a mentality thing that he needs to improve on.

"But I think it's also a way to calm the expectation levels of Liverpool fans a little bit. Let's see how we get on, how we bed into this season. He's obviously waiting for new players to come in as well.

"Most of the time it's a mentality thing that players will have to improve and the manager will certainly be looking to improve on as well."

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