Liverpool: Iraola told to urgently sign two players to fix big Slot weakness with 'X

Liverpool have been told they simply must sign a player who can change the entire dynamic of a game this summer, whatever the cost, as they look to move triumphantly into a new era, while a new midfielder is also seen as a transfer ‘must-have’ to bring Andoni Iraola’s system to life.

The Reds chose to replace Arne Slot with Iraola after a woeful defence of their Premier League crown in a dismal season that saw Liverpool only just scrape a fifth-placed finish.

And while the Merseyside giants are expected to play a far more exciting brand of football under their new Spanish tactician, Iraola will need to be backed heavily in the transfer market to bring his vision at Anfield to life.

Indeed, with several senior stars such as Ibrahima Konate, Andy Robertson and, most significantly, Mohamed Salah all leaving Anfield, the Reds will need some high-profile arrivals to ensure their new era gets off to a fast start.

Replacing Salah is arguably the biggest priority. And while the Reds have been spurned by top target Yan Diomande, former Anfield favourite John Arne Riise has exclusively told TEAMtalk why he wants FSG to go all out to sign Bradley Barcola this summer.

“I was actually just about to name Barcola. I really like Bradley Barcola and think he has had a brilliant World Cup with France,” the Norwegian exclusively revealed to us on behalf of BestBettingSites.co.uk.

“Liverpool need an attacker or a winger who possesses that raw, unpredictable X-factor – someone who gives the Anfield crowd that immediate lift.

“It’s like when young Rio Ngumoha comes on; you can instantly feel the energy in the stadium shift because the fans know something exciting is about to happen.

“I want Liverpool to target that exact profile – a player who can step up and change the entire dynamic of a match.”

READ NEXT: Liverpool in for ‘lightning-quick’ £70m Plan C winger with Arsenal ‘top of the race’ for Barcola

Iraola has issues to fix in Liverpool midfield

Iraola, who held his first press conference as Liverpool manager on Monday, has also been told that he need to add more physicality in his engine room to truly bring his high-press, high-intensity vision to life.

His former Bournemouth star Alex Scott and Roma’s impressive France midfielder Manu Kone are among those being linked and, on the surface, look ideal candidates to ramp up the Liverpool midfield.

And while Riise, who played for Liverpool between 2001 and 2008, did not name any specific targets, he does think that adding more power to his midfield will be high on Iraola’s agenda at Anfield this summer.

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“We need some more – I always say “power” – but I mean physical strength and more physical presence in the middle,” he explained.

“We have some great players there, but you could see in certain games when the tempo was high, and it came down to tight challenges, we lost too many of those battles in the middle of the park last season. It was too easy to run over our midfield.

“I think Dominik Szoboszlai was our best player last season, but apart from that, players struggled in midfield.

“Then again, I don’t know the manager too well; I’ve only seen his teams play, but I’m sure he’s aware of what’s needed at the club.”

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