Why Joe Gomez being fit again matters more than it looks

Andoni Iraola confirmed on Monday that Joe Gomez is back in his squad for Tuesday’s Carabao Cup third round tie against Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield, and while that might read as a routine team news update, we think it’s one of the more useful pieces of news Liverpool have had all week. Gomez has trained fully after clearing up a hamstring issue, and Iraola’s own words, that it’s now a case of deciding how much he can play, tell you a coach thinking carefully rather than one simply relieved to have a body back.

A fixture list that’s already testing Iraola

It’s worth remembering how compressed Iraola’s start to life at Anfield has been. A 2-0 win away at Ipswich Town was followed within days by a bruising 2-1 Champions League victory over Atletico Madrid, and the toll of that showed on Saturday when Fulham held Liverpool to a goalless draw at Anfield. Iraola made three changes for that game, bringing in Victor Munoz, Ryan Gravenberch and Kostas Tsimikas, and admitted afterwards that freshness had been an issue. Three days on, another fixture arrives, and rotation now looks less like an option and more like a necessity.

Gomez isn’t just squad depth

This is where Gomez’s timing becomes interesting. Liverpool haven’t been short of centre back options this season, but a fit, versatile defender who can play across the back line gives Iraola a genuine tool for managing minutes rather than just papering over gaps. We’d expect a measured introduction rather than a straight recall to the XI, since neither Iraola nor his medical staff will want to gamble with a player only just back from a hamstring problem, especially this early into a season that already has Premier League, Champions League and now domestic cup football stacking up.

Spurs arrive out of form too

There’s context on the other side of this fixture as well. Tottenham head to Merseyside on the back of a flat 0-0 draw with Everton, so neither side comes into this tie with much attacking momentum behind them. That should, in theory, make the Carabao Cup a useful proving ground rather than a distraction, and it gives Iraola a low risk setting to find out more about players who haven’t had a run of games yet under him.

Our take

None of this is the kind of news that dominates a back page, but it’s exactly the sort of detail that shapes how a first season under a new head coach actually plays out. Iraola is still working out his squad, still managing a punishing schedule, and still trying to build some rhythm after a stuttering weekend. Getting Gomez back fit doesn’t fix any of that on its own, but it gives Iraola one more option as he tries to juggle three competitions at once, and on a night like this, that’s worth having.