--- title: "Liverpool squad warning from Emile Heskey on Iraola" canonical: "https://readliverpoolfc.com/news/liverpool-squad-warning-heskey/" type: "post" language: "en-GB" author: "Shumail Sajid" section: "Liverpool News" published: "2026-10-03T09:45:00Z" modified: "2026-10-03T09:45:00Z" --- # Liverpool squad warning from Emile Heskey on Iraola Emile Heskey has issued a pointed Liverpool squad warning. Speaking to the Liverpool Echo, the former Reds striker said Andoni Iraola cannot take this team to the next level. Not with the squad he has now. Iraola replaced Arne Slot in the summer. Since then, he has reached the international break unbeaten at Anfield. Liverpool have won two and drawn three of their first five league games this season. They also beat Atletico Madrid in the Champions League and Tottenham Hotspur in the Carabao Cup on the way to the international break. However, Heskey is not worried about those results. He is worried about what the squad lets Iraola do next. ## Liverpool squad not good enough for Iraola Heskey’s case starts with last season’s disappointment. That is the backdrop Iraola walked into at Anfield in June. According to Emile Heskey in an interview quoted by the Liverpool Echo, “The scenario you’re in isn’t necessarily unstable, but there’s a dire need to win, and you need to win after a disappointing season.” He does not blame Iraola for what has gone wrong. According to Emile Heskey, as quoted by the Liverpool Echo, “It was clear it was going to be tough for him. I think he did decently, without doing miracles, but to be honest, I don’t think he has a squad to do miracles with.” That gap between a difficult start and the tools on offer sits at the heart of this Liverpool squad warning. “I just think the squad is not where Liverpool should have had it for him to take the team to the next level,” Heskey told the Echo. Heskey himself was a decent name for Liverpool and had his fair share of goals upfront. He scored 22 goals in Gerard Houllier’s treble-winning squad of 2001. His latest verdict suggests a bleak squad, different to what he remembers a title-ready squad looks like. ## Is Liverpool squad not good enough despite the results? On paper, the numbers do not scream crisis. Iraola is unbeaten at Anfield going into the break. Liverpool have taken two wins and three draws from their first five league matches. Add the wins over Atletico Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur, and the start looks steady, not alarming. Liverpool’s form held up on the recent trip to the south coast too. We covered that game in [our Bournemouth report](https://readliverpoolfc.com/news/bournemouth-vs-liverpool-match-report-isak-winner/), with Iraola’s selection set out in [the confirmed XI](https://readliverpoolfc.com/news/bournemouth-vs-liverpool-lineups-confirmed-team-news/). Alisson was outstanding that day. We praised his display in [the Jacquet praise piece](https://readliverpoolfc.com/news/alisson-praises-jacquet-liverpool-bournemouth-win/). Moments like that keep results ticking over even as Heskey questions the squad as a whole. Heskey’s point is that results alone do not settle this debate. His complaint is about depth and quality below the surface, not the unbeaten run at home. You can read his full comments in [the Echo interview](https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/liverpool-squad-isnt-should-reds-34699965). ## Upcoming names for Liverpool According to Emile Heskey in an interview quoted by the Liverpool Echo, Iraola is “bringing in a few youngsters like [Lewis Koumas](https://readliverpoolfc.com/squad/lewis-koumas/) and testing the ground to see if he can plug a few holes.” [Trey Nyoni](https://readliverpoolfc.com/squad/trey-nyoni/) is the name Heskey keeps coming back to. He coached the midfielder at Leicester at under 16 level. He remembers a player whose football brain outran his body. According to Emile Heskey in an interview quoted by the Liverpool Echo, “I was coaching at Leicester when Trey Nyoni was there at U16, and for someone so frail and young, his mind was way ahead of everyone else.” That early promise has not slowed down, in Heskey’s telling. “He went to U18 \[level\], and it was way too easy for him. When I say too easy, it really was too easy,” he said. He added, “Then he went to U21 and it was the same.” Will that talent turn into regular first team minutes under Iraola? Supporters will be watching closely. Liverpool return to action by hosting Manchester City on October 11, a fixture previewed in [the City preview](https://readliverpoolfc.com/first-team/match-previews/liverpool-vs-man-city-lineups-team-news/). It offers the next real test of how far this squad can carry Iraola.