Less than three weeks out from the start of the Premier League season and Andoni Iraola is already getting a crash course in one of the great traditions of Liverpool pre-seasons — managing an injury list while trying to build something meaningful on the training pitch.

The Reds have played three matches in America, picking up wins over Sunderland and Wrexham before a 4-2 defeat against Leeds on Sunday brought them back down to earth. Monaco visit Anfield this coming Sunday for what will be a significant occasion, before a double header against Como on the 16th of August wraps the whole thing up.

With the season opener against Newcastle looming, Iraola is doing his best to piece together a squad that is, frankly, not yet complete. World Cup returnees are filtering back, rehabilitation cases are at various stages, and new arrivals are still on their way. It is a lot to manage, but the picture is becoming clearer. Here is where everybody stands.

JEREMY JACQUET

The defender arrived at Liverpool this summer after missing the tail end of last season with a shoulder injury. He made the trip to the States with the squad but did not feature in any of the three matches. Iraola is being cautious, and understandably so given how long Jacquet has been away from competitive football.

"He did the first part of the pre-season, let's say, very well," Iraola said. "Now he's feeling some discomfort, so we don't want to rush him. He comes from a lot of months without playing. And obviously I would like to try with him with Virgil when he recovers, because with the injury to Joe we've been without senior centre-backs. But we have to be careful with Jeremy, yes."

That last line says it all. The manager wants him fit and available, but forcing it would be a false economy.

JOE GOMEZ

This is the one that stings most. Gomez was barely a few minutes into the pre-season opener against Sunderland when he pulled up with a muscle injury and had to come off. The broad expectation is that he will be sidelined for around a month, which almost certainly rules him out of the Newcastle fixture.

Iraola was characteristically measured when addressing it. "Joe has a muscle injury. It was quite clear since he complained straight away so he will be some weeks off. Normally one month. If it goes very good, then a little bit less. If it goes bad then a bit more but it's a muscle injury. It's not massive. I think it will be impossible to have him for the start of the season because we are not so far but it shouldn't be a lot more."

Not ideal, but not a catastrophe either. Context matters, and Iraola himself acknowledged that this, combined with the situation around Jacquet, has left him without his senior centre-back options for the early part of pre-season.

JEREMIE FRIMPONG

This one caused a flicker of alarm during the Leeds defeat. Frimpong appeared to point to his groin area before signalling to the bench to come off in the second half. Substitute made, social media did what social media does, and everyone prepared for the worst.

Iraola was not particularly flustered, however. "Jeremie asked for the sub but I don't think it's an injury. It was just some overload and I hope he's not injured in that way. I don't think we've lost anyone."

Hopeful rather than definitive, but given the manager was speaking with some awareness of the situation, it is probably sensible to take his word for it for now. The lad had also been working hard through the American tour and bodies need managing at this stage of the summer.

VICTOR MUNOZ

The new signing was part of the Spain squad that lifted the World Cup this summer and will be linking up with his new teammates imminently. Iraola confirmed he is expected to arrive when the squad returns, noting that Munoz himself was keen to come in slightly earlier than the three weeks he would have been entitled to take off.

"He wanted also to come a little bit earlier," Iraola said. "Because obviously he is coming to a new club, he will need some time to adapt, to meet his teammates. We will have him next week."

That kind of attitude will go down well.

ALISSON

The goalkeeper was with Brazil for the World Cup and Iraola confirmed he will be back at the AXA Training Centre from the first day the squad returns to Liverpool, arriving slightly later than some teammates who came back before the tour but ready to go from day one on home soil.

ALEXIS MAC ALLISTER

The midfielder went deep into the World Cup with Argentina, reaching the final, and Iraola is giving him the time he has well and truly earned. The expectation is that he returns around the Monaco fixture, which given how many minutes he has played over the last year or so, seems entirely reasonable.

"I hope he comes fully recovered and he enjoys also the break that he definitely has earned," Iraola said. A manager who looks after his players — always a good sign.

OTHER REHABILITATION CASES

Elsewhere, Wataru Endo is edging closer to a return after partially training with the group during the American tour — progress that will be quietly welcomed given his importance to the squad's midfield options.

Two longer-term cases remain. One defender suffered a serious knee injury back in January and is continuing rehabilitation after travelling with the squad to the States. One forward, meanwhile, ruptured their Achilles in April and has reportedly been targeting Boxing Day as a return date — a timeline that highlights just how significant that injury was.

With Monaco on Sunday, the squad is starting to take shape. The next couple of weeks will be telling.