The win was real. The worry is bigger.

Liverpool beat Sunderland 4-2 in Andoni Iraola's first match in charge. Four goals. A clean statement. But the story that matters walked off that pitch before the final whistle — Joe Gomez, and whatever just happened to him.

That is the headline Iraola did not want. Wins are supposed to set the tone. Injuries to key defenders set a different kind of tone entirely.

What the goals told us

Four different scorers in your first match as manager. That is not luck. That is a squad that showed up ready to perform — and probably one that wanted to make an impression on a new boss.

Kieran Morrison opened the scoring. That name will mean something to the people who have been watching closely. Young, direct, hungry. Getting on the scoresheet on a day like this only helps him.

Dominik Szoboszlai added another. When Szoboszlai is in the mood he is one of the most dynamic midfielders in the country. A goal from him early in the season — early under any manager — is a signal worth reading.

Federico Chiesa then got involved. Chiesa has had a complicated relationship with consistent fitness since he arrived at the club. Every time he contributes in a match like this, it matters. He needs minutes and momentum. This helps both.

Lewis Koumas rounded it off. Four goals. Four names. No single player hogging it. If Iraola wanted to see an early sign that this group can share the load, he got it.

Sunderland pulled two back. That part should not be dismissed. 4-2 is a comfortable scoreline on paper. How you concede tells you something too. We do not know yet what those goals revealed about the defensive shape Iraola wants to build — but they happened, and they will have been noted.

Iraola's first impression

Andoni Iraola earned his reputation the hard way. His football is demanding. High energy. High press. Relentless off the ball. Getting that identity into a squad in the short time between arrival and a competitive match is a real challenge.

A 4-2 win is a decent answer to that challenge. Not a perfect one. But decent.

What we cannot judge yet is how much of this was the new system working and how much was Liverpool's quality doing what Liverpool's quality does regardless. Sunderland are not a soft touch — but they are not the standard that will define whether Iraola's project succeeds.

The real tests come later. Right now, the man has one win from one game. We can work with that.

Gomez is the conversation we need to have

Here is the thing about Joe Gomez. When he is fit and focused, he is a proper Premier League centre-back. Not a squad filler. Not cover. A legitimate starter who can handle the pressure of a big club.

Which is exactly why his injury matters so much. Liverpool's defensive depth is always a conversation when bodies start dropping. Iraola has just started his tenure and already that conversation is being forced.

We do not yet know the severity. But any time a defender leaves the pitch early, the question of timelines and replacements follows immediately. Iraola will know that. His staff will already be running through scenarios.

A new manager cannot choose the problems that land on his desk in week one. Iraola did not pick this. But how he handles it — in training, in selection, in the matches ahead — will tell us a lot about the kind of manager he is when the situation is not ideal.

Our verdict

Four goals on debut. Good. Gomez limping away from the pitch. Not good. These two things happened in the same afternoon and both are true at the same time.

Iraola's Liverpool are off and running. They are also carrying a concern before the season has properly found its legs. That is the reality of managing a big club. The complications arrive immediately.

We are watching closely.

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