NewsAndoni Iraola's update on when Reds' World Cup players will return

The head coach confirmed Ryan Gravenberch, Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz are set to link up with the Liverpool squad that arrived in Chicago on Monday to begin a two-week spell in the USA.

“The three players that are going to join us are going to be [in the] second week fully with us,” Iraola told a press conference on Tuesday.

“The ones that were [eliminated] from the World Cup, they all - because of different reasons - have individual days for their arrivals, but I think the sooner we can start working with them and they can understand what we want from them the better.

“Individually I talked with the three of them, they know the main things, but I am looking forward to having them here with the group and to go slowly, slowly with recovering bodies [to the squad].”

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Alisson Becker, Cody Gakpo and Virgil van Dijk are on a similar timetable to Gravenberch, Isak and Wirtz in terms of beginning work with the Reds ahead of 2026-27, but that will start at the AXA Training Centre while their teammates are in North America.

Iraola explained: “They will, in terms of dates of training, be very similar but they will start training at the AXA in Liverpool.

“Because of different reasons, especially Virgil because he has been the player with most minutes in Europe I would say, and Cody for other reasons, they are going to start training basically in the same week as the others but instead of making them come here with the team, we considered that it was sensible with them to start the first week training with a small group or even with younger players that are at the AXA and join us when we [return].”

Having been involved in Sunday’s World Cup final between Argentina and Spain, Alexis Mac Allister and new signing Victor Munoz will be the final players to rejoin the squad after a period of rest.

Iraola admitted their late returns mean they may not be fully ready for the opening Premier League fixture of the season, against Newcastle United at St. James’ Park on August 23, but he’s optimistic the rest of the squad will be in good condition.

“In the end, I think the most difficult situations logically will be Alexis and Victor because they played until the end of the tournament, so I think they deserve their holidays and some rest also,” said the head coach.

“I hope they have time to at least train with us a little bit, but it is true that it will probably affect the beginning of the season a little bit. We cannot only think in the short term and the first game against Newcastle; we have to also understand, especially in the case of Alexis, who played a lot of minutes during the season and a lot of minutes in the World Cup, that they deserve this rest.

“All the others should be fine to arrive in perfect conditions to the first game.”