Eiraola: Facing Atlético is a real test for us, and Simeone has more experience than me

Andoni Iraola, the manager of Liverpool, spoke about the upcoming match against Atlético, scheduled for tomorrow at Anfield in the first round of the group stage of the UEFA Champions League.

In his statements during the press conference, Iraola described the match as a special moment in his career, especially since it will be his first encounter with Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League at Anfield, while also praising Diego Simeone, the manager of Atlético.

Iraola said: "I think it’s a special night for me, everyone talks about UEFA Champions League nights at Anfield, and the first match will be against a strong opponent, it’s Atlético. Simeone is doing a great job as a coach, and achieving the club's goals every season over the past years is amazing, and it certainly represents a big challenge for us."

Regarding his previous encounters with Simeone, he explained: "I think I played against Simeone as a player when he was still a player, and I played against his teams when he was a coach, and I have also coached against him, so we have a lot of previous experiences. He certainly has much more experience than me in such matches, but I hope we can give him a good game tomorrow."

Iraola spoke about his feelings of coaching Liverpool at Anfield, saying: "It's one of the dreams, probably, when you start your coaching career. When I started my coaching career seven or eight years ago, it was hard for me to reach where I am now, and I hope to enjoy this experience."

Liverpool's manager stressed the magnitude of the responsibility before the start of the team's European journey, saying: "It is a big responsibility and a huge challenge, but I feel proud to be the manager of Liverpool, and now my focus is on building the team in the best way that allows us to deliver a good match, win the game, and make a strong start in the UEFA Champions League."

And about Atlético's style, Iraola said: "I think Atlético is a team that plays excellently, we always notice in Simeone's teams that they have more ball possession, and they start to control it in the early stages of the match."

He added: "They are characterized by high dynamism thanks to their four attacking players, which sometimes makes it difficult to stop them, given the frequent rotation among their players in attacking positions. It won't be easy for their opponents or for us tomorrow."

Iraola confirmed his good knowledge of Atlético Madrid, pointing out the difficulty of the match, saying: "I think I know Atlético Madrid well, and some of their players; it will be a tough test match, and it would have been so even if I weren't the coach, because it is our first match in the UEFA Champions League against another big club."

He concluded his statements by stressing the importance of the encounter, saying: "It's a great match and a real test for the team as a whole, and I believe it will show us the level of our performance. We showed good signs in the last match against Ipswich, and now let's see our level against a team like Atlético."