Iraola takes charge at Anfield for the first time, and Forest arrive without a goal to their name
Nottingham Forest broke their transfer record for Liam Delap this week and could hand him a debut at Anfield. Neither they nor Liverpool have won a match this season.
Aug 29, 2026
Andoni Iraola has managed one competitive match as Liverpool head coach and it was at St James’ Park. Saturday brings the other half of the job. Nottingham Forest come to Anfield at 5pm IST, and for the first time Iraola will hear what the place sounds like when the result matters.
Iraola’s Anfield debut
He arrived this summer from Bournemouth, where three seasons ended in a sixth-place finish, an 18-game unbeaten run and the first European qualification in the club’s history, and he replaced Arne Slot after Liverpool finished fifth in 2025-26. There is a small piece of symmetry here. Iraola’s last match in charge of Bournemouth was a draw away at Nottingham Forest on the final day of last season. His first at Anfield is against the same club. He has taken this Liverpool side out at Anfield twice already, losing to Monaco and beating Como in pre-season, and neither counted for anything.
The opening weekend at Newcastle was the sort of match that tells you very little and feels like a lot. Liverpool went behind twice and came back twice, Cody Gakpo scoring one and Dominik Szoboszlai converting a penalty in the 99th minute for 2-2. A point away at Newcastle is a point away at Newcastle. It is also not a win, and Iraola does not have one yet.
He will not have Conor Bradley, Hugo Ekitike, Joe Gomez, Vitezslav Jaros, Stefan Bajcetic or Giovanni Leoni, all of whom are out injured.
Forest have lost twice to the same team already
Oliver Glasner’s first two matches in charge of Forest were both at the City Ground, both against Leeds United, and both defeats. Leeds won the Premier League opener 1-0 on 22 August through Anton Stach’s free kick, then came back three days later and won 2-0 in the Carabao Cup through Dan James and James Justin. Forest have not scored a goal under their new manager.
Glasner knows Anfield too, and he knows what a good season looks like at a club that is not one of the biggest spenders. He won the FA Cup and the Conference League at Crystal Palace before leaving this summer. What he has not had at Forest yet is a functioning attack.
The 50 million pound answer
Forest’s response to that was to break their transfer record. Liam Delap arrived from Chelsea on Thursday for a fee reported at 45 million pounds with another five in add-ons, on a contract to 2031. It is a striking amount of money for a 23-year-old who scored three goals in 47 matches for Chelsea, a year after they paid Ipswich 30 million for him on the back of 12 Premier League goals in a relegated side.
Glasner has said publicly that he thinks Forest is the place Delap gets his career going again. He could make his debut at Anfield, which is about the hardest place in England to be introduced to a new crowd. Forest are without Nicolo Savona through injury, and Ibrahim Sangare picked up a calf problem in training on Wednesday. Morgan Gibbs-White and Ryan Yates are both fit.
What to watch
Iraola’s Bournemouth pressed high and played fast, and the question all summer has been whether that survives contact with a squad built for a different manager. Forest are expected to line up in a back three and look to break. If Liverpool are sloppy in possession early, Anfield gets nervous quickly, and Forest have Gibbs-White and Ndoye to punish it.
The likelier outcome is that Liverpool get their first win and Delap gets his first taste of what he has signed up for. But two matches against the same opponent is a thin basis for writing off a season, and Forest will not get a quieter afternoon than this one to find out what they have bought.