The game against Ipswich was a big test for Andoni Iraola.
Before a ball was kicked, the expectation was that Dominik Szoboszlai, professional midfielder per his Instagram bio, would replace Jeremie Frimpong at right-back.
On Friday, a lot of the journalists associated with Liverpool released articles essentially calling the No8 the solution to the full-back situation after his stint there against Nottingham Forest.
His deployment there would likely cause a shift in, well, everything. He isn’t going to limit his involvement and he isn’t going to be making countless off the ball runs to facilitate others in the same way Frimpong did.
The big question heading into the game was whether the Hungary skipper justified a change in system and style. Then the team was revealed for the trip to Portman Road and it was Ronald Araujo at right-back.
When he signed, a lot of the reports alluded to the fact he could fill in at full-back. Yet it felt a little farfetched. Being able to fill in at right-back isn’t the same thing as being able to carry out the right-back role for a specific manager.
Was Araujo really going to be inverting as a full-back in the final third? Was he really going to be comfortable doubling up in wide areas with the right-sided attacker? He didn’t really come across as that type of right-back. Was Iraola going to tweak everything to accommodate him?
Managers can adapt and it isn't a sign of weakness to evolve, but a defensive right-back was such a dramatic shift away from how full-backs were utilised under Iraola, balancing it would’ve been difficult.
If you isolate the right-winger too much, you give the right side of the double pivot even more to do with and without the ball. If you open up the middle of the pitch more and it's extra stress on the double pivot in general, and by extension the centre-back pairing.
If you want to limit that space you have to control, you can't be as aggressive with the press and then you lose the Iraola identity, don't you? And you end up with a weird hybrid press that is neither aggressive or controlled.
It would've been a bit like the press Liverpool fans witnessed under Arne Slot last season. Not a dig either. Just a fact. Essentially, if you try to blend a press - high to regain possession and mid to control space, you have no control and a wide open team.
It sounds dramatic and exaggerated but changing the right-back profile had the potential to collapse the press, shape and style.
The big test for Iraola was whether he'd stick to his principles or whether he'd change things up after just two matches.
This decision has the potential to shape his entire reign as Liverpool manager.
Seeing Araujo tucked inside close to the Ipswich 18-yard box, occupying defenders and creating space for Szoboszlai and Victor Munoz was a big relief for Liverpool fans.
The on-loan Barcelona skipper adapted to the system rather than making Iraola adapt the system to him. There's two things here.
Firstly, props to the Head Coach for not betraying his philosophy and going into safety mode. Secondly, props to Araujo for committing to the role. In the long run, it might not be the play, but it was a relief to see Iraola being Iraola.
And while Araujo played the role, popping up centrally during certain phases and doubling up in wide areas during other situations, he added a bit to it purely because of his physicality.
He didn’t try to be too adventurous with his passing. That isn’t his game and he knows it. He didn’t try to be something he’s not.
Outside of Munoz’s run and Alexander Isak’s two finishes, the highlight of the contest was when, in the final 10 minutes of the match, the ball ricocheted to the Uruguayan and instead of trying to be fancy, he just punted the ball a full 60 yards to clear his lines. He wanted that clean sheet.
He committed zero fouls, made one tackle, one recovery and nine clearances. He won 75% of his ground duels (three of four) and 100% of his aerial duels (six of six). To go with the physical dominance, he was also decent in possession too, completing 84% of his passes, playing seven line breaking passes and completing 100% of his attempted dribbles.
Is this a long-term play? That's unclear. The game against Ipswich suited him. Would he be just as comfortable playing there against, say, a Manchester City or a Chelsea?
Still, though, there are lots of positives to take from this game.
Iraola trusts his ideas. Araujo is a genuine right-back option in certain games. He can carry out instructions and he’s not as eccentric or chaotic as he might’ve looked at Barcelona.
If it carries on, the loan move might be one of the best transfers of the summer.
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