Liverpool announced the appointment of Andoni Iraola’s new, four-man backroom staff on Thursday, with no surprise to see the names arriving.
Tommy Elphick, Shaun Cooper, Pablo De la Torre and Tom Webber all join having been with Iraola at Bournemouth, with Elphick perhaps the most intriguing addition.
The former Bournemouth centre-back is a boyhood Liverpool supporter, and has the potential to be a head coach in the future.
How does Andoni Iraola fit Wirtz and Isak into Liverpool’s starting XI next season?
Will we finally see the best of them after encouraging World Cups?
He will no doubt be looking forward to getting stuck in at Anfield, and will hope for better luck than he managed on his first visit to the stadium, which saw him have a goal disallowed during a 1-0 defeat in what was Bournemouth’s first ever Premier League away day in August 2015.
Elphick saw goal disallowed before offside controversy
Rewind 11 years, and Bournemouth were embarking on their first ever stint in English football’s top division, only five years after being promoted from League Two.
Having joined in 2012, Elphick helped the Cherries to promotion from League One and then the Championship, before Anfield played host to a poignant afternoon for him, and an historic one for his club.
The Liverpool team of 2015 was not a good one, and with Brendan Rodgers under real pressure following a disappointing season, the game against Bournemouth had the look of being a potential banana skin.
READ MORE: Why Liverpool had no sporting director between 2012 and 2015 and what FSG did instead
That had seemed to be coming true early on, when Elphick thought he’d headed home at the Anfield Road end, only to have been adjudged to have had two hands on the shoulders of Dejan Lovren. The referee blew his whistle before the ball hit the net, and, though it was a good header from Liverpool’s new assistant coach, it did look like a foul.
Then came the controversy. With 26 minutes on the clock, Jordan Henderson whipped a ball into the box for the Liverpool forwards to attack.
Coming back from an offside position, Philippe Coutinho tried his best to get on the end of it, but missed, with the ball travelling all the way to the back post and to Christian Benteke.
The Belgian, making his first Anfield appearance since a £32.5m move from Aston Villa, made no mistake, sliding in to score and hand Liverpool a nervy three points.
Which former Liverpool player do you want to see on Andoni Iraola’s coaching staff?
Both are free and available…
Though Benteke was clearly onside, Coutinho had made a clear attempt to play the ball, and Bournemouth’s grievances felt justified.
Ultimately, the goal stood, and Liverpool took the points on a day where Elphick may have truly felt the power of Anfield for the first time. More than a decade on, he is in a position he likely never dreamed would be possible, and will hopefully now be on the right side of many more big moments with his boyhood club.
Receive a digest of our best Liverpool content each week direct to your mailbox
