Liverpool Lose Three Stars — Iraola's LASK Rotation Gamble Gets Harder
GOATIFYLiverpool travel to Austria for Wednesday's Champions League meeting with LASK needing a response to their 3-0 defeat by Manchester City and facing a problem that cannot be solved by simply naming their strongest XI. Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai are missing from the travelling squad, leaving Andoni Iraola to balance immediate results against a crowded schedule.
There is no confirmed starting lineup yet. The decisions are whether to preserve an experienced spine, how to use Ryan Gravenberch before his domestic suspension, and which young attackers can make Liverpool dangerous without three established options. Those choices will shape far more than one European night.
Three Missing Starters Change the Shape of Liverpool's Trip
Liverpool's Champions League visit to LASK on Wednesday, October 14, arrives at an awkward moment for Andoni Iraola. Three players who could have shaped his starting attack and midfield have not travelled to Austria: Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai. Isak has been dealing with a thigh problem, Gakpo with an ankle issue and Szoboszlai with a hamstring complaint. None appears in the 23-man travelling party. That is the confirmed starting point, rather than a prediction about how Iraola will arrange the players who remain.
The timing magnifies the absences. Liverpool were beaten 3-0 by Manchester City at Anfield on Sunday, a match that ended with the home side down to ten men and left difficult questions about their resilience. They now have to move from that disappointment into another competition with only a short recovery window. A Champions League away win could restore some momentum, but a disjointed performance would deepen scrutiny of the new-look squad. The manager is not simply trying to replace three names on a team sheet; he is trying to preserve a recognisable style when the most obvious combinations are unavailable.
The problems extend beyond the trio. Hugo Ekitike remains out, while Conor Bradley and Giovanni Leoni are also absent through injury. Wataru Endo and Federico Chiesa did not make the European registration list, so neither is a late alternative for this fixture. That leaves Iraola with a narrower senior group and less room to correct a selection that is not working. The travelling squad still includes experienced players such as Alisson, Virgil van Dijk, Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch, but it also contains youngsters whose roles could expand much faster than expected.
Van Dijk's inclusion is an important positive. The captain disclosed that he had taken a knock against City, yet he has made the trip. Being available does not automatically mean he must play every minute. Iraola has to weigh the stabilising effect of an established defender against the physical demands of the schedule. Removing too much experience from the back line while changing the midfield and attack would multiply the number of partnerships being tested at once. Retaining the captain, even for part of the match, would give less familiar combinations a clearer reference point.
Liverpool began this Champions League campaign by beating Atlético Madrid 2-1, so the opportunity is not to rescue a failed European start. It is to build on a good result while the domestic season is asking uncomfortable questions. The decisive detail on Wednesday may be whether Liverpool can maintain control after their first wave of pressing breaks down. With fewer established outlets ahead of the ball, defenders and midfielders will need to make more careful choices about when to push forward and when to slow the tempo.
Rest the Veterans or Keep the Spine? Iraola's Rotation Trap
Iraola has two competing incentives. He can keep a strong spine on the field, use the LASK match to re-establish rhythm and try to secure an early advantage. Or he can rotate aggressively, protecting players who face another Premier League assignment at Brentford on Saturday. Neither approach is risk-free. A largely unchanged side could carry Sunday's fatigue into the game; a heavily altered one could spend its first half learning how to play together under European pressure.
A conservative rotation would still allow meaningful changes. Kostas Tsimikas could come in at left-back, Trey Nyoni could get midfield minutes and Rio Ngumoha could provide direct running from a wide position. That would leave more of the established central structure intact. The advantage is continuity: defenders know which midfielder will receive the first pass, and attackers can anticipate the positions of the players supporting them. The disadvantage is that some veterans would shoulder another demanding fixture before the league schedule offers any breathing room.
The alternative is a more extensive reshuffle. Jeremie Frimpong and Joe Gomez are among the defensive options, while James McConnell and Luke Chambers have travelled and can offer additional cover. In midfield, Nyoni's energy is attractive, but the balance alongside Gravenberch and a more attacking player requires thought. A lineup with several changes might be fresher on paper without necessarily being better coordinated. The manager must decide how much tactical unfamiliarity the match can absorb, especially if LASK begin aggressively in front of their own crowd.
Gravenberch presents a particularly interesting scheduling wrinkle. He is suspended for the upcoming league trip to Brentford after his dismissal against City, but that domestic suspension does not by itself rule him out of the European game. Using him against LASK would make practical sense if Iraola wants an experienced midfielder available now while resting Mac Allister for Saturday. It is also a reminder that managing a congested calendar is not as simple as splitting minutes evenly: the players who can feature in each competition are not always the same.
The Austrian opposition should not be mistaken for an automatic three points. LASK have lost four of their previous five matches in all competitions and came into this fixture after a 2-0 defeat in which they failed to register a shot on target. Those results suggest a team searching for confidence, but they do not guarantee that Liverpool will dictate every phase. A home side with little to lose can commit bodies to duels, chase second balls and turn set pieces into its best route into the contest. If Liverpool rotate too many positions simultaneously, even a struggling opponent can make the opening hour uncomfortable.
The ideal solution is probably not a neat choice between full strength and wholesale rotation. It is a selective lineup that protects the most heavily loaded players while keeping enough shared experience through the middle of the pitch. Iraola can then adjust once the match provides real information. A strong start would give him the option to withdraw a veteran early; a poor start would make that same decision much harder.
Barcola, Koumas and Danns Must Make the Missing Goals Feel Smaller
The attacking decisions are the most visible consequence of the injury list. Without Isak, Gakpo and Ekitike, Liverpool do not have their normal collection of senior finishing options. Bradley Barcola could be asked to play through the middle rather than start from his preferred wide areas, with Rio Ngumoha or Victor Muñoz taking responsibility for stretching the pitch. Lewis Koumas offers a more conventional central-forward alternative. Those are plausible solutions, not a confirmed starting lineup, and each would change how Liverpool progress the ball into the penalty area.
Barcola's value is his ability to carry possession at speed and force defenders to turn toward their own goal. Used centrally, he could threaten the channels and drag a centre-back away from the middle, opening a lane for a runner arriving from deep. But the trade-off is clear: a winger playing as a striker is not automatically the same sort of penalty-box reference point as Isak. If Liverpool become too dependent on Barcola receiving with his back to goal, they risk neutralising the movement that makes him dangerous. The surrounding forwards must run beyond him rather than stand and watch.
Koumas and Jayden Danns make the selection more intriguing. Koumas has travelled and could lead the line if Iraola wants someone comfortable occupying central defenders. Danns is also in the squad after managing his workload at youth level, and his inclusion provides another option if the manager needs a more direct presence later in the game. Neither young forward should be expected to solve every attacking issue alone. Their contribution could be as simple as pinning a defender, contesting a cross or creating the second ball that a teammate converts into a chance.
Florian Wirtz's positioning is just as important. If Liverpool use Barcola as a mobile central forward, Wirtz may find pockets behind the first line of pressure, where a quick pass can release a winger into space. If Koumas starts centrally, Wirtz could instead look for combinations around a more fixed striker. In either case, the team needs movement from the far-side winger when the ball is on the opposite flank. A front four that all comes short for possession can look busy without creating the depth required to stretch a defence.
The lesson from Sunday's defeat is not that Liverpool need to abandon their attacking ideas. It is that their structure must remain connected when the match changes. After losing a player against City, the gaps between the lines became difficult to manage. Against LASK, an early misplaced pass or a failed press could still leave a makeshift attack isolated from the midfield. Iraola will want the forwards to defend as a unit, close passing lanes with purpose and offer immediate outlets once Liverpool recover the ball.
For supporters, the useful measures will go beyond the score. Does Barcola get to attack space instead of wrestling with two centre-backs? Can Koumas or Danns turn limited minutes into a genuine threat? Does Wirtz receive the ball facing goal, and do Liverpool create repeatable chances rather than relying on an isolated moment? With Brentford waiting at the weekend and further European fixtures ahead, Wednesday is a chance to show that the squad has a workable Plan B. It will not erase the injury problems, but it can demonstrate that three missing stars do not have to mean three missing points.
The sensible answer for Liverpool is selective rotation rather than a wholesale reset. Iraola needs enough senior players to control the match while creating minutes for the youngsters who may be needed repeatedly over the coming weeks. LASK's recent struggles make this a chance to restore momentum, not an excuse to assume an easy evening.
Whatever the starting XI, the most revealing evidence will be the quality of Liverpool's movement without the ball, the midfield's ability to protect transitions and whether the reshaped forward line can create chances consistently. The final selection remains Iraola's decision; the three absences have already made it a significant test of his squad management.
