Iraola Praises Hungry Jacquet as £60m Defender Nears Peak Fitness

Andoni Iraola says Jeremy Jacquet is closing in on peak fitness and has backed the £60million defender to grow even stronger after an eye-catching start to life at Liverpool.

The 21-year-old finally walked through the doors at Anfield in July, six months after the club struck a deal with Rennes in the January window. His arrival came with a caveat: he was still working back from shoulder surgery that had ended his previous campaign in February and cost him a large slice of pre-season.

Liverpool knew they were buying talent, not readiness. The plan was patience.

Jacquet has ripped that script up.

Thrown in for his first taste of Liverpool football in the final pre-season friendly against Como, the centre-back impressed immediately. Iraola liked what he saw and has not looked back, starting the Frenchman in all four competitive fixtures so far this season.

The workload has ramped up quickly. Jacquet completed his first full 90 minutes in the 2-0 win at Ipswich Town last Friday, then backed it up with another full game in the Champions League victory over Atletico Madrid in midweek.

“I think he had had good performances. He is still building,” Iraola said, underlining that this is only the beginning.

“The first games, he couldn’t finish. Against Ipswich, he finished but he was very tired. I was very happy the other night because he finished and he had no issues and was fresh. He finished quite strong.

“He is building his physical condition after a lot of months without playing.”

Liverpool’s staff had tracked Jacquet closely at Rennes and felt they knew exactly what they were getting. The early evidence is matching the scouting reports.

“He is a player that we knew about his qualities. He is confident on the ball, he is aggressive without the ball,” Iraola said.

“He is quick and mentality-wise, you can see he is hungry to win things, to play minutes. Obviously I am very happy with him.”

Four games in, Liverpool’s new centre-back is still climbing towards his ceiling. The signs suggest that when he finally hits full speed, Iraola will have a formidable pillar at the heart of his defence.