Iraola warns £123m Barcola to expect intense Liverpool scrutiny

Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola has told Bradley Barcola he must be ready for the pressure and criticism that accompany his reported £123 million move from Paris Saint-Germain.

The France forward endured a difficult start at Anfield, but answered his early critics in emphatic fashion on Wednesday by scoring his first Liverpool goals in a hat-trick during a 6-3 Champions League win over LASK.

Iraola expects the assessment of Barcola’s performances to continue shifting sharply as the 23-year-old adapts to his new team.

“Football is like this. You win a game, you are incredible; you have a bad performance, you are a disaster,” Iraola said before Saturday’s Premier League visit to Brentford.

“It is going to be like this for Bradley, for everyone who works in football. We have to assume this.”

The Liverpool boss believes Barcola’s progress will be helped by playing more regularly and developing a stronger understanding with those around him.

“Now it is a matter of finding the best condition and best connection with team-mates, the level of understanding, the work of everyone, when to attack the spaces,” Iraola said.

“The more he plays with us, the more he plays with his team-mates, the better he will become.”

Barcola’s breakthrough came as Liverpool dealt with a number of injury concerns. Cody Gakpo, Alexander Isak and Dominik Szoboszlai have missed the past two matches after sustaining injuries while on international duty, and all three remain doubtful for the match at Brentford.

Iraola also gave an update on Giovanni Leoni, whose return from a serious knee problem has been pushed back.

The Italian sustained an anterior cruciate ligament injury on his Liverpool debut in September last year. Iraola said the damage was more extensive than first indicated.

“Talking to the medical department, it wasn’t just an ACL. It was a bad injury; a lot of things around the knee were involved apart from the ACL,” he said.

Leoni is now expected to start the next phase of his rehabilitation during the forthcoming international break, later than had originally been anticipated.

Liverpool will hope Barcola’s three-goal Champions League performance marks the beginning of a more consistent run as they face a demanding Premier League fixture against Brentford on Saturday.