Andoni Iraola spent years with Inigo Perez sitting next to him in the dugout. On Tuesday 20 October they meet as opponents, when Liverpool vs Villarreal comes to Anfield on Champions League Matchday 3, and it's Perez who will be picking the Spanish side.
The timing isn't kind to the home team. Liverpool lost 3-0 at home to Manchester City on Sunday, while Villarreal have only just ended a long wait for a Champions League win. Kick-off is 20:00 BST, which is 21:00 in Spain and 3:00pm ET.
The assistant who became the opposition
Perez worked under Iraola at Rayo Vallecano. When Iraola left for Bournemouth in 2023, Perez couldn't follow him to England, and Rayo made him head coach in February 2024. He then took them all the way to the Conference League final, which they lost 1-0 to Crystal Palace.
Villarreal hired him on 1 June on a contract to 2029, after Marcelino left following a third-place finish in La Liga. Iraola went the other way, from Bournemouth to Anfield.
Both men like their teams to press high, so I'd expect a frantic game with almost no time on the ball in midfield. Perez knows exactly what his old boss will ask of his players, and that familiarity could make this tighter than the gap between the squads suggests.
Better in Europe than at home
Liverpool's European campaign opened with a comeback against Atletico Madrid at Anfield. Marcos Llorente put the visitors in front before Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister turned it into a 2-1 win. The Premier League has been a slog by comparison: Iraola's side are ninth after six games, with two wins, three draws and one defeat.
That defeat hurt. Ryan Gravenberch was sent off for a second yellow card just after the hour against City, and Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku and Rayan Cherki all scored in the next 16 minutes. Liverpool also travel to Austria to play LASK on Wednesday night, and how much Iraola rotates there will shape the team he picks for Villarreal.
Villarreal are 11th in La Liga with eight points from eight games, and lost 1-0 at Real Madrid on Saturday. Their Champions League season started with a 3-2 defeat at Borussia Dortmund, where Serhou Guirassy scored twice. Then on Tuesday they beat Napoli 3-1 at the Estadio de la Ceramica. Amir Rrahmani gave Napoli the lead, Georges Mikautadze and Santiago Mourino struck within four minutes of each other, and substitute Tani Oluwaseyi added a late third. That ended a run of 12 Champions League games without a win.
They host Elche on Saturday before the trip to Merseyside.
Liverpool
VillarrealSzoboszlai's hamstring
If one player sums up where Liverpool are, it's Szoboszlai. He scored against Atletico and does a lot of the pressing Iraola wants, but a hamstring problem kept him out of the squad that went to LASK. Alexander Isak (thigh) and Cody Gakpo (ankle) stayed at home too, although Iraola said the three of them are "not far away".
Beyond that, Hugo Ekitike has an Achilles problem, Conor Bradley has a knee injury, and Giovanni Leoni isn't expected back until early November. One bit of good news: Gravenberch's red card came in the Premier League, so he can play here.
For Villarreal, keep an eye on Mikautadze after his goal against Napoli. Perez's team news should be clearer after the Elche game.
Villarreal have never scored at Anfield
The clubs have met four times, all in European semi-finals, and Liverpool won both ties. The Anfield record is the striking bit: two games, five Liverpool goals, none for Villarreal.
| Date | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|
| 3 May 2022 | Villarreal 2-3 Liverpool | Champions League semi-final, 2nd leg |
| 27 Apr 2022 | Liverpool 2-0 Villarreal | Champions League semi-final, 1st leg |
| 5 May 2016 | Liverpool 3-0 Villarreal | Europa League semi-final, 2nd leg |
| 28 Apr 2016 | Villarreal 1-0 Liverpool | Europa League semi-final, 1st leg |
Villarreal's only win came in the 2016 first leg. In 2022 they led 2-0 at home in the second leg and had Liverpool properly rattled, and still lost 3-2 on the night and 5-2 on aggregate.
Who wins Liverpool vs Villarreal?
Liverpool have the stronger squad and a good European night at Anfield already behind them. But the absences in attack and midfield are real, and Sunday will have stung. Villarreal score goals and came from behind against Napoli, so I don't see this being a comfortable evening for the hosts.
I'll go 2-1 to Liverpool. Home advantage and history both point that way, though Perez knows his old boss well enough to make it awkward, particularly if Iraola is short of forwards.
In the UK, Liverpool vs Villarreal is on TNT Sports unless Amazon Prime Video uses its first pick of the night on it, and Spanish viewers will find it on Movistar Plus+. It also streams free on DAMITV with no account, via our Champions League live streams page. Reds fans can bookmark the Liverpool live stream page, Villarreal's league games are on our La Liga streams, and Spanish speakers can use Champions League en vivo or futbol en vivo.
It's a busy Tuesday: PSG host Barcelona and Manchester City play AEK Athens at the same time, and we've previewed both (PSG vs Barcelona, Man City vs AEK).
