Andoni Iraola left with one option as injuries expose Liverpool's thin squad

As autumn has arrived, Andoni Iraola has quickly reached the point of his first Liverpool season where adept management of his squad is required. Liverpool's options were already described as "quite thin" before the season began, and the only arrival after that was the £123m signing of Bradley Barcola, a high-class addition who could not on his own bolster the numbers.

While Premier League champions Arsenal and Manchester City have built depth across multiple areas, Liverpool have instead assembled a team of three £100m-plus signings in Barcola, Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz. They ended the transfer window without signing a midfielder, despite the departure of Curtis Jones to Inter for £30m. These are problems Iraola inherited when he replaced Arne Slot, and which went unsolved during the final summer of former sporting director Richard Hughes.

Youth called upon

Injuries have now stretched the squad even thinner. Forward Lewis Koumas, midfielder Trey Nyoni and winger Rio Ngumoha all started Liverpool's 6-3 Champions League win over LASK on Wednesday, and all three are expected to feature against Brentford on Saturday. Isak, Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai are all unlikely to be fit, while Ryan Gravenberch serves a one-match suspension following his sending off in the defeat to Manchester City.

Liverpool are in a run of six games in 18 days, and Iraola acknowledged the demands on the squad. "In this period, especially, where we are basically playing every three days, less than three days, you need more players," he said. "We will need everyone in one moment or another."

Nyoni's chance

Nyoni impressed Iraola enough in pre-season that Liverpool were prepared to go into the campaign without replacing Jones. The 19-year-old made several appearances off the bench under Slot last season but started only twice. He could now make his first Premier League start against Brentford, a move that would be down to the absences of Szoboszlai and Gravenberch but would also feel merited after his assured performances against LASK and Tottenham in the Carabao Cup.

Iraola has backed the teenager to keep building. "Trey is a player that I think, being very young with not a lot of minutes in the first team, he's very mature," Iraola said. "He understands the situations very well, he understands the game very well. Tactically, I think he's really smart. But he has to continue doing the steps in the right direction. I'm confident with him."

He added: "And I think it's very good for us that we can put [in] these young players with not a lot of experience and they can perform in a competition like the Champions League or in the Premier League."

A squad built on necessity

The make-up of Liverpool's squad, essentially a mix of expensive established internationals and academy products or recruits with potential, leaves very little in the middle. That can create opportunity, but it also means the club will lean heavily on young players. It is considered extremely unlikely Liverpool will avoid further injuries during the season, even when Isak, Gakpo, Szoboszlai and Hugo Ekitike return from their absences. Nyoni, Ngumoha and the 21-year-old Koumas will be required to step up at times.

Whether Nyoni can take his moment on Saturday will reveal much about the options Iraola has to work with.