Szoboszlai's Versatility: Liverpool's Right-Back Solution
Andoni Iraola is ready to turn again to one of his most unlikely problem-solvers.
Dominik Szoboszlai, Liverpool’s reigning player of the year and creative heartbeat, could once more find himself stationed at right-back this season as injuries bite and a thin full-back department is exposed.
Szoboszlai the makeshift full-back… again
Szoboszlai’s numbers last season were outstanding by any measure: 25 goal contributions – 13 goals and 12 assists – in 53 appearances. They look even more impressive when you remember how often he was dragged away from his preferred attacking midfield role to plug gaps at right-back.
Liverpool’s failure to properly reinforce that area in the summer has already come back to haunt them. Jeremie Frimpong has been targeted in the opening two games, opponents repeatedly funnelling attacks down his flank and finding joy.
Liverpool did try a late fix. On deadline day, they made a move to raid Chelsea, only to be swiftly rebuffed by the London club. No deal. No new right-back.
So Iraola is left looking inside his own dressing room. And he knows exactly where to turn.
“I haven’t found any situation where a player has said he doesn’t want to play in a position,” Iraola said in Thursday’s press conference, careful with his words but clear with his intent.
“We have discussions, but everyone wants to help. If we have to play Dom as a right winger, as a right-back or a midfielder, he wants to help the team first.
“We have some injuries now, and we need the versatility of the players, players like Dom. Even in the game, they have to change positions.”
The message is obvious: Szoboszlai is on standby for that right-back slot again.
No transfer regrets, no excuses
Liverpool’s only major first-team addition after the £123m signing of Bradley Barcola never arrived. The window closed without another senior reinforcement, particularly in defence, and the questions were inevitable.
Iraola, though, refused to bite at any suggestion of frustration.
“I’m very happy with the signings we made. Do I want more signings? At the end, the club has decided those signings we have done are the ones that will improve our team.
“There were other options we decided not to take for different reasons, sometimes sporting or economic; the deal didn’t make sense in the market. But I’m happy now.
“We have a lot of quality in the team. The moment is for the players to give it all they have.”
He is backing the squad he has, not pining for the one he might have built.
Right-back riddle and midfield puzzle
The immediate headache sits on the right side of defence.
“The challenge in the squad now is we don’t have Conor [Bradley] there at right-back. That’s why I value Dom at right-back, as he can play there,” Iraola admitted.
“Versatility in the player helps us go through the moments when we have injuries.
“In midfield we have good numbers. Now it’s a matter of getting the right calls from myself.”
That last line is telling. Iraola knows this period will define how quickly Liverpool settle into his ideas. He has bodies in the middle of the park, options to mix and match, but he must find the right blend while also covering gaps in defence.
“I’m finding now the best combinations, and we are going through a period now where we will play a lot of games, and we’ll have a chance to see the options we have and the combinations we have. It’s a matter of coaching.”
Square pegs in round holes are not a tactical fantasy at Anfield right now. They are a necessity. And Szoboszlai, one of the club’s most gifted attackers, could again be the one sacrificed for the system.
Injuries bite as fixtures pile up
The calendar offers no mercy. With games coming thick and fast, Liverpool are already leaning on their depth – and discovering how fragile some areas of the squad still are.
“The closest one [to playing again] is Joe [Gomez]. He will start training with us next week,” Iraola revealed.
“Next one is [Giovanni] Leoni; he could be training during the break with the group. Conor [Bradley] is next, and, especially Hugo, longer.”
Until those players return, the improvisation continues. Iraola will juggle, shuffle, and reassign roles, asking stars like Szoboszlai to abandon comfort for the collective.
If Liverpool’s season is to stay on track through this early storm, it may rest on how far their best players are willing to stretch themselves – and how often their most dangerous creator can once again become their emergency right-back.
