Bradley Barcola's Promising Start for the Reds
Bradley Barcola walked off Anfield to a standing ovation and a twinge of frustration – but not with his body.
Given his first start for the Reds in the Champions League clash under the lights, the France forward brought energy, direct running and a real threat before his night ended on the hour mark. When he sank to the turf and signalled to the bench, there was a flicker of concern. Anfield has seen too many promising debuts cut short by something worse than fatigue.
This time, though, the diagnosis was kind.
Barcola scare eased by Iraola
Asked afterwards if he feared bad news on Barcola, Andoni Iraola brushed it aside.
“No, it is cramp. It is just cramp, there is no injury,” the head coach said, cutting through any panic.
For Iraola, the evening was as much about discovering Barcola’s current limits as it was about unleashing his talent. The forward arrived from PSG without a pre-season in his legs, a detail that has shaped every selection call so far.
“With Bradley, it's about building his physical condition,” Iraola explained. “We don't really know – or we didn't know until now, probably – how much he can play because he hasn't had any minutes in pre-season for PSG.
“He played 30 the other day and today we had some question marks, how many minutes he can give us and probably now we know.”
The answers were encouraging. Barcola twice burst clear to face the goalkeeper, twice threatening to crown his first start with a goal.
“He hasn't scored, but I want him there,” Iraola stressed. “There is where he has to make the difference, arriving to those spots, those positions, and I'm very happy because in – I don't know how many minutes he's played – two times against the 'keeper is a good sign with Bradley.”
The finishing will come. The movement is already there.
Gakpo race against time for Fulham
If Barcola’s issue is straightforward, Cody Gakpo’s situation is more delicate.
The Dutchman missed training on Tuesday and sat out the league-phase opener, a notable absence in a demanding week. Iraola does not expect a long lay-off, but the clock is ticking ahead of Saturday’s visit of Fulham.
“I don't know if he will be back for Fulham,” he admitted. “I hope so, but I don't know. He doesn't have a proper injury, but he finished with niggles in both of the adductors the other day.
“We expected to have him for today, but it hasn't been possible. It's not a big thing, but the problem is we play here again in two days and a half.”
That schedule shapes everything now. Recovery sessions matter as much as tactics.
“I think now is a moment of recovery in these two days,” Iraola said. “Let's see how Bradley has finished, how Cody is and if he can give us some minutes. If not, Rio, Victor, I think today everyone has done a big effort.”
The message is clear: the collective will carry the load if the headline forwards cannot.
“We need to recover, we need to regroup and think because in two days and a half we play again here against Fulham, it's a very important game again for us. So, I hope we can have Cody with us, but I cannot guarantee it.”
Kerkez and the cramp factor
Milos Kerkez also limped out of the win over Atletico late on, with Kostas Tsimikas sent on in the 88th minute after the full-back needed treatment. Another potential problem, another anxious glance to the bench.
Again, Iraola cooled it quickly. Like Barcola, Kerkez had simply emptied the tank.
“Milos and Bradley were just cramping and were just tired,” he said. “I think I always want to do subs because of this, because you've given everything, you don't have any more, perfect.
“We do the subs, not because you haven't run and I have to sub you. So, I prefer when you've done everything you can and then we sub you because you cannot run anymore.”
That is the standard now: run yourself into the ground, then raise your hand.
The squad has done exactly that in Europe. The question is whether their legs – and their forwards – can go again when Fulham roll back into Anfield in 48 hours’ time.
