Liverpool's Defensive Shift: Iraola Trusts Youth and Ndukwe's Future

Liverpool’s defensive jigsaw is shifting again – and this time it could open the door for one of their most intriguing prospects.

Iraola leans into youth after Slot standstill

Liverpool’s squad is swollen with players across the first team and academy, yet last season’s injury crisis exposed how thin things could look when it really mattered. Arne Slot was forced to improvise, but his reluctance to lean on anyone other than Rio Ngumoha left Anfield with a sense of stagnation rather than renewal.

Andoni Iraola has changed that mood quickly. The Spaniard has already shown far greater trust in the club’s youngsters, with Lewis Koumas, Trey Nyoni and Isaac Mabaya all in line for regular involvement this season. The pathway suddenly feels open again.

Chambers on Celtic’s radar

One area Liverpool made a point of addressing in the summer was central defence. Ronald Araujo and Jeremy Jacquet arrived to bolster Iraola’s options after last term’s depth issues left the back line badly exposed.

Even with those signings, the club kept extra cover around. Mabaya stayed. So did Luke Chambers, who currently sits as Liverpool’s fifth-choice centre-back.

That status might soon change.

Journalist Lewis Bower has reported that Celtic are admirers of Chambers, hinting on X that the Scottish champions “really like” the defender. A January move north of the border is now very much in play.

On the surface, losing a fifth-choice centre-back hardly sounds seismic. Yet the fact Liverpool are actively exploring a new home for Chambers is significant. It suggests they are preparing space for someone else.

Ndukwe’s work-permit puzzle

That someone is Ifeanyi Ndukwe.

The Austrian centre-back lit up pre-season, impressing staff and supporters with his composure, timing in the tackle and overall presence. Despite his lack of senior minutes, he played like he had been in the first team for years, just as Liverpool were grappling with the void left by Ibrahima Konate’s departure.

The problem was bureaucratic, not footballing. Ndukwe did not immediately qualify for a UK work permit, so Liverpool arranged a loan to Levante with a clear plan: get him games in La Liga, build up the required points, then bring him back into the fold.

So far, that plan has stalled. Levante have yet to give the youngster meaningful playing time, leaving his work-permit situation effectively frozen. Without minutes, there are no points. Without points, there is no return.

A gap forming at the back?

This is where Chambers and Celtic come back into focus.

If Chambers does leave in January and Ndukwe still lacks the criteria for a work permit, Liverpool risk reopening the very hole they tried to close in defence. Araujo and Jacquet strengthen the first-choice pool, but depth is what broke them last season.

The club is expected to be active again in the winter window, and another defender is firmly on the list of possibilities. Yet the ideal scenario is obvious: Levante finally play Ndukwe, he secures the remaining points, Liverpool recall him, and he steps into the vacancy Chambers would leave behind.

No fee, no scramble, and a high-upside talent integrated into Iraola’s plans.

Liverpool’s next defensive pillar?

Some supporters already see Ndukwe as a potential long-term pillar of the back line, the kind of presence who could one day echo Virgil van Dijk’s authority. That is a lofty comparison and still a distant projection, but the raw tools he showed in pre-season were enough to fuel that excitement.

For now, the situation is simple. Liverpool need Levante to use him. They need the paperwork to catch up with the talent. And they need Iraola ready to commit to him the moment the door opens.

If Celtic do land Chambers and a space is cleared in Liverpool’s central defensive group, the question becomes sharp and immediate: will that vacancy be filled by another signing, or by the return of a young defender who already looks like he belongs?