Iraola's Team Fights Back for Draw in Thrilling Season Opener
Andoni Iraola walked off with a point and a headache. His side had trailed twice, survived a frantic opening day away at Newcastle, and still found the legs – and nerve – to claw it back at the death.
Newcastle struck first through Anthony Elanga inside the opening five minutes, then went ahead again via Joe Willock. Each time, Iraola’s team answered: Cody Gakpo levelled once, Dominik Szoboszlai again, as the visitors refused to fold in a chaotic, end‑to‑end contest.
Speaking to BBC after the final whistle, Iraola admitted the draw left him conflicted.
"It's a strange feeling. Not the result we wanted but it's true, the way we scored the goal in the end, it tastes better. Still, we would have definitely preferred the win," he said, leaning on the resilience his players had shown after going 2-1 down.
The game started in exactly the way he had feared.
"We started the game the worst way we knew. Newcastle away, first game of the season, the atmosphere, they have very fast players and we concede the goal," he said. One lapse, one break, and they were chasing.
"They punished us and we had to go against the result. But we didn't give up in any moment."
First Half
The first half was a scramble. The second half, Iraola felt, belonged more to his side. They pushed higher, squeezed Newcastle back and kept the ball where they wanted it.
"Once you concede the first goal, you need the game to go fast. You need things to happen when you're losing," he explained. "We could control the game in the second half. We had better possession around their box. When we scored, it looked like we were the team going to turn the game but then they scored again."
The intensity came at a cost. Iraola and his staff had to lean hard on the bench to keep the tempo high and the press aggressive.
"Jeremy hasn't done a proper pre-season, so it was kind of expected that he didn't finish the game," he said of Jeremy Jacquet, one of those withdrawn. "All the substitutes gave us energy. We need it because it's difficult to last the full 90 minutes with the same players the way we want to play. Players coming off the bench can affect the game."
One of those changes did exactly that. Victor Munoz arrived and immediately dragged Newcastle’s defence into awkward areas, finally earning the late penalty that salvaged the point.
Iraola felt Munoz could have had even more to show for his cameo.
"Victor almost had another penalty but the referee whistled before conceding it but it was even more clear. So he has really affected the game."
If this breathless opener is any indication, Iraola’s side will live on the edge this season – and he will keep demanding players from the bench who can tilt nights like this back in his favour.
