Andoni Iraola has steadily grown into his role at Liverpool, with Wednesday’s Carabao Cup penalty shootout win over Chelsea the latest in a growing line of impressive wins for the Basque.

Though things have not always been pretty, the signs are clearly there that Iraola is beginning to build something at Anfield, and as he starts to iron out several of the issues still plaguing the squad, that feeling will hopefully continue to develop nicely.

Trey Nyoni should overtake Ryan Gravenberch

Liverpool are currently having to cope without Dominik Szoboszlai, who could potentially return for Sunday’s clash with Arsenal, but also may not, and might even be out until the November international break.

In his place, Gravenberch has generally been the player Iraola has turned to in midfield alongside Alexis Mac Allister, who continues to be the undisputed first pick in the middle of the pitch.

However, Nyoni has been putting pressure on Gravenberch with some good performances when his chances have arisen, and on Wednesday the difference between the current confidence levels of the pair could not have been more clear.

Gravenberch was branded as ‘ridiculous‘ by former Liverpool right-back Glen Johnson after his decision to tackle through the back of Moises Caicedo resulted in a Chelsea penalty. Things got no better for the 24-year-old, who struggled through the rest of the match before seeing a tame penalty saved by Mike Penders.

In contrast, Nyoni looked comfortable again, breezing through his 82 minutes on the pitch and showing why many supporters are keen for him to take on a bigger role in the squad. After Wednesday’s nightmare for Gravenberch, he just might.

Nyoni should start against Arsenal

If Szoboszlai is still missing for Sunday, and for the moment it seems highly unlikely that he will start the game, Iraola has a big decision to make in his midfield.

Mac Allister will definitely play, as will Florian Wirtz in the No. 10 role, but it is a straight shootout between Gravenberch and Nyoni for the final spot.

Iraola has had to make this decision before in recent weeks, and though he ultimately got sent off against Manchester City, the call to start Gravenberch over Nyoni on that day initially looked like being a good one. It could be that the Liverpool head coach goes with experience over youth in such a big game once again.

However, Wednesday was proof that Gravenberch has regressed since the City game, and Nyoni now looks like the best option alongside Mac Allister.

The 19-year-old was taken off with eight minutes left to play against Chelsea, and with Gravenberch staying on for the full 90 minutes, perhaps Iraola was giving a nod to his thinking for the weekend.

On these performances, he should stick with Nyoni and hand him a first ever Premier League start against the champions. Gravenberch has let a starting spot slip through his fingers alarmingly, and Wednesday only confirmed that a big change of the midfield guard is now firmly underway.