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Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola is already suffering from £15m Arne Slot transfer mistake COMMENT: The Reds are suffering from one of their former manager's mistakes. Andoni Iraola hasn’t had it easy since he was ushered in to replace Arne Slot as Liverpool boss. The Spanish coach worked wonders with Bournemouth, guiding the club to European qualification for the first time in their history, and was understandably targeted by Liverpool following Slot’s sacking. But since he was hired by the Merseyside outfit, Iraola has had several problems to contend with. By far and away the biggest has been the situation in defence, with Liverpool forced to play most of pre-season with just one senior centre-back at their disposal. That situation has been mended somewhat thanks to the addition of Ronald Araujo, who joined on loan from Barcelona, but there’s still work to be done on the transfer front. However, one thing that Iraola won’t have control over is the lasting impact of a mistake made by his predecessor, when Tyler Morton was permitted to leave the club on a permanent transfer to Lyon. The local lad left Liverpool last summer for a measly £15million, and the midfielder played 43 times across all competitions. He made a great impression on the Ligue 1 outfit and looks to have already picked up where he left off. During Lyon’s crucial 3-0 victory over Sparta Prague in Champions League qualification on Tuesday, the 23-year-old scored a stunner to complete the victory and made the most passes into the final third with 14. On top of that, he completed the most long balls (11) and the most recoveries in midfield (8) with what was an all-round composed performance. The move to France has worked wonders, with Morton telling the BBC: “I was so hungry to play again and find my love for football again. It’s really difficult when you don’t play. It’s so tough. You don’t get to show everyone how good you are. I’d never been more hungry to play football in my life. “The manager has given me the reins to play my football and I’m loving it. There’s no better position than No. 6, getting on the ball constantly, finding passes between the lines and using my brain to dictate games. Paulo Fonseca’s an incredible manager. He’s helped me so much. I’ve discovered things I didn’t even know I had as a footballer.” The irony of it all is that he’s developing into just the sort of player Liverpool might need to spend big on in the coming transfer windows. Ryan Gravenberch was among those guilty of letting his standards drop last season, but if he isn’t able to replicate the performances of 2024/25, Liverpool may need to address that area of the pitch. Alexis Mac Allister had a below-par campaign too, with suggestions this could be a make-or-break year for the Argentine. Morton is making an impact and would it really be a surprise to see Liverpool go back for their former academy product? They will have to pay much more than £15m if they do, after neglecting to put a buy-back option in the deal that took him to Lyon.