Andoni Iraola welcomes back 15 Liverpool first-teamers as 2026/27 Pre-Season officially begins

Tuesday 14 July marked the start of pre-season training at AXA Training Centre as the hard work truly began for new head coach Andoni Iraola.

However, the Spaniard has a very truncated squad with which to work, at least initially, due to player departures, injuries and World Cup call-ups. This meant he only had 15 first team players reporting for the start of Liverpool’s pre-season,

At his introductory press conference, the new manager acknowledged as much, stating "the first part of pre-season, basically, it's going to be with a lot of players from the Academy".

Nevertheless, there were still some senior players reporting for duty in Kirkby, so found out who, as well as when others might be back.

Goalkeepers: Giorgi Mamardashvili, Freddie Woodman & Ármin Pécsi

For the first part of pre-season, before Alisson returns, Giorgi Mamardashvili will get the chance to stake his claim to the new manager. The Georgian endured something of a nightmare first season at Liverpool, having been highly-rated at previous club Valencia, signed for £25 million.

Across 20 appearances, he kept only three clean sheets and conceded 34 goals, suffering a whopping 12 defeats, in the net for 63% of their loses. This is not to say many, or indeed any, of these results were Mamardashvili's fault, but he is yet to inspire confidence.

Third-choice Freddie Woodman and youngster Ármin Pécsi are also working with coaches Xavi Valero and Colin Stewart.

Defenders: Jeremie Frimpong, Jérémy Jacquet, Joe Gomez, Kostas Tsimikas & Milos Kerkez

New signing Jérémy Jacquet is the headline defender fans are excited to see. He signed from Stade Rennais for £55 million in January, but was oddly loaned back to the Ligue 1 side for the remainder of the campaign, despite the Reds' desperate need for defensive reinforcements at the time. Now he is belatedly here, the highly-rated 21 year old will want to justify the hype and his huge price tag.

Elsewhere, Jeremie Frimpong was surprisingly excluded from Ronald Koeman's Netherlands squad, so is back earlier than his national team counterparts. Joe Gomez, Milos Kerkez and forgotten man Kostas Tsimikas make up the defensive options, the latter back after a loan spell at Roma.

Midfielders: Dominik Szoboszlai, Harvey Elliott, Curtis Jones, Trey Nyoni & James McConnell.

Alongside Kerkez, Dominik Szoboszlai is also back at the AXA, Iraola perhaps thankful Hungary did not reach a first World Cup since 86. Youngsters James McConnell and Trey Nyoni are also considered first team players, while the other two midfielders face uncertain futures.

Harvey Elliott endured a nightmare season at Aston Villa, making just nine appearances, because a tenth would have triggered a £35 million obligation to buy that Unai Emery was unwilling to sanction. Well, Iraola confirmed that the 23 year old is "definitely" in his plans, adding that "he will have a chance during the pre-season".

In contrast, could Curtis Jones depart? There is interest from Inter Milan, Nottingham Forest and others in his signature but, for now, he remains a Liverpool player.

Forwards: Federico Chiesa & Rio Ngumoha

Senior forwards are extremely thin on the ground for Iraola at the moment. Italy's failure to qualify for a third successive World Cup means Federico Chiesa is at AXA, albeit if Liverpool are able to sign the attackers they are hoping to recruit, he could end the summer back in Serie A.

A player who is going nowhere is Rio Ngumoha. The 17 year old bursted onto the scene last season, racking up 29 senior appearances, famously scoring an 100th minute winner at St James' Park last August, as well as opening the scoring when Fulham visited Anfield in April.

Thus, having made his senior England debut against New Zealand in a friendly in Tampa last month, Ngumoha will be central to Iraola's plans, that is for certain.

Which Liverpool players are currently injured?

Liverpool currently have three players recovering from long-term injuries. Giovanni Leoni is expected to be back soon, after rupturing his ACL on debut against Southampton in the EFL Cup last September. Meantime, Conor Bradley and Hugo Ekitiké suffered equally nasty knee injuries in January and April respectively, meaning they are both months away from returning.

When will Liverpool's World Cup representatives be back?

FIFPRO regulations dictate that players are entitled to three weeks holiday between seasons. Well, with just 40 days to go until Liverpool's Premier League opener on Tyneside, that would not allow for very much preparation time. So, when might the club's World Cup representatives return?

Liverpool World Cup players: Potential return dates

New recruit Víctor Muñoz and Alexis Mac Allister are still involved in the World Cup, so neither are likely to feature in pre-season very much.

The Reds' first pre-season fixture is against Sunderland on 25 July, shortly after the majority of their World Cup representatives are due back.

Therefore it'll be interesting to see how many are involved in that one at Geodis Park in Nashville, as well as against Wrexham at Yankee Stadium and Leeds at Soldier Field later that week. \

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