Liverpool's opening six Premier League fixtures of the new season will all be against managers new to their clubs, a scenario that has never occurred before in the competition's history, according to Opta data reviewed by BBC Sport. Manager Andoni Iraola, himself newly appointed at Anfield after leaving Bournemouth in June, says this creates extra preparation work, as his analysis team must study unfamiliar tactical approaches across all six early opponents rather than relying on established knowledge of rival managers' systems.

Iraola brought analyst Tom Webber with him from Bournemouth to aid his integration, and Liverpool's analysis department also includes Jansen Moreno, Joel Bonner and set-piece specialist Lewis Mahoney, supported by coaches Tommy Elphick and Shaun Cooper. The six opponents' new managers are Oliver Glasner (Nottingham Forest), Gary O'Neil (Ipswich), Enzo Maresca (Manchester City), Matthias Jaissle (Newcastle), Alvaro Arbeloa (Fulham) and Marco Rose (Bournemouth), some of whom have prior Premier League experience with other clubs. Preparation methods described include studying pre-season footage, using platforms such as Hudl Wyscout, and drawing on a Premier League-wide tracking data-sharing agreement in place since 2016, as detailed by former Liverpool research director Ian Graham.