Lewis Koumas shows big-money recruits what Iraola expects from forwards

Lewis Koumas was proudly showing off his man-of-the-match award on FaceTime to his family as he left Liverpool’s dressing room still pinching himself late on Tuesday evening.

A breathless performance, characterised by the relentless harassing of every Tottenham Hotspur player he came across, was one of the foundation stones in a 3-1 Carabao Cup third-round success. It earned the young forward a rousing ovation as he was replaced by the £125million man Alexander Isak for the closing stages.

“It was my mum,” Koumas said of his impromptu audience. “She was here tonight with my nan, my grandad and my sister. They were all in the box. I rang them straight away to show them the trophy and they were buzzing.”

The Liverpool head coach, Andoni Iraola, had said on the eve of the Tottenham tie that his offensive players needed to work harder off the ball to help his vision for how he wants his team to play come to fruition. He then proceeded to give Florian Wirtz the night off. The summer signings Bradley Barcola and Víctor Muñoz joined Isak on the substitutes’ bench.

As £400million-worth of talent looked on, it was the academy graduate Koumas who led the way, prompting Iraola to say afterwards that his unstinting efforts had been “contagious” and served to lift those around him.

That being the case, what now for Koumas? Liverpool head to Bournemouth, Iraola’s former club, on Sunday — the day after Koumas turns 21 — for a testing encounter and the expectation will be that the big guns return refreshed after their rest and he drops to the bench.

Yet a standard was set in their absence and Iraola does not appear the sort who, in the long run, will pick on reputation alone. The beauty of Koumas’ contribution is that he will be firmly in the coach’s thoughts, especially as he can play across the front line and not just centrally as against Spurs.

“I think how I play is ultimately the Liverpool way,” said Koumas, whose father, Jason, started his career at Liverpool’s academy before spells at clubs including Tranmere Rovers and West Bromwich Albion as well as earning 34 caps for Wales.

“We’ve always been a club where players have to give absolutely everything on the pitch. We’re bringing that back now and the crowd are loving it.

“You never know when your last time on the pitch for Liverpool is going to be. I just try to leave everything out there every time.

“It’s definitely something the manager is trying to instil but it’s also me through and through. That’s why I’m being trusted to go out there and do a job for the team.

“A lot of it is about what I do off the ball. The gaffer has shown trust that I can carry out his plans in terms of how we want to play tactically.

“It gives me so much motivation, the fact he’s putting me in for a game like this. I want to kick on now.”

Koumas’s only previous start for Liverpool came when he scored in an FA Cup win against Southampton in February 2024, just a few days after he had been an unused substitute in the Carabao Cup final triumph over Chelsea at Wembley.

He then had loan spells at Stoke City, Birmingham City and Hull City and the smart money would have been on him furthering his development away from Anfield this season as well. Yet in pre-season, Iraola immediately warmed to Koumas, who has 12 caps for Wales, blocking the prospect of another temporary move and recognising that his qualities could be valuable.

It is not difficult to imagine that the influx of attack-minded talent at Liverpool over the past 15 months could unsettle those seeking a breakthrough. Pathways become blocked, but Koumas, who joined at under-11 level having previously been at Tranmere, has continued to believe.

“A lot of hunger can be lost in the game with how things go,” said Koumas, who grew up idolising Michael Owen and Gareth Bale and would watch videos of their finishing prowess.

“But for me coming through the pre-academy and right through the academy, my hunger has always been there. My hunger comes from representing Liverpool Football Club. Wanting to give everything for the best club in the world.

“I never showed a weak mentality about how the future would look for me at Liverpool. I always had the drive that I would get here. The reason for going out on loan was to prepare for this moment.

“The past two years have been massive for my development. Going out on loan helped me to become the player I am today. I was able to impress the new manager in pre-season and it’s all worked out well.”

The milestones reached since then, with debuts in the Premier League and Champions League, are such that he would not have believed anyone who told him in advance this was how everything would play out.

“I would have woken up! I would have thought I was dreaming,” he added. “It’s crazy. But I’m just really happy and very grateful for the opportunities I’ve been given.”

Sometime, soon enough, there will be more.

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