Graham Ruthven: Trent Alexander-Arnold’s dreadful display against Man Utd raises questions about his immediate Liverpool future

Trent Alexander-Arnold was a target for Manchester United on Sunday. They doubled – sometimes trebled – up on the Liverpool right back and gave him arguably his most uncomfortable games in a red shirt. When Alexander-Arnold picked up a booking seven minutes from the end, Arne Slot hauled him off. He could have been substituted much earlier.

So often a difference-maker for Liverpool in the past, Alexander-Arnold was a liability on Sunday. Diogo Dalot’s surgery past his opposite number countless times, with United keen to get Rasmus Hojlund and Bruno Fernandes over to the right side to further expose Alexander-Arnold’s defensive weakness. Alexander-Arnold was partly to blame for both Manchester United goals.

First, he failed to engage Fernandes in any way as he played through Lisandro Martinez after losing the ball. Then, he got caught out of position as Alejandro Garnacho centred a pass for Amad Diallo to sweep home. His dismal performance naturally generated discussion over the current mindset of a player at the centre of intense transfer speculation. Alexander-Arnold will be out of contract at the end of the season and is a target for Real Madrid, which is reportedly attempting to sign the 26-year-old this month.

🚨 Real Madrid approach Liverpool to sign Trent Alexander-Arnold. No offer made but #RMFC willing to pay for 26yo England intl. Rebuffed immediately. No figures discussed but #LFC to talk again with right-back’s camp soon. W/ @JamesPearceLFC @TheAthleticFC https://t.co/Tg00l5SFUj

— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) December 31, 2024

Nobody can question the commitment of Alexander-Arnol,d who came through Liverpool’s youth academy to win everything with the club. However, Sunday’s match cast doubt on Alexander-Arnold’s ability to compartmentalise and not allow the transfer speculation to impact his performances on the pitch. Of course, Alexander-Arnold has long been a defensive suspect, which is why Ruben Amorim set up his Manchester United side to strike Liverpool’s right back in the first place. The 26-year-old is a natural creator and is a key supply line to the forward line of Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo. As a true defender, though, Alexander-Arnold has flaws.

Trent Alexander-Arnold has been dribbled past more times than any other defender in Europe's top five leagues this season (30). 😬 pic.twitter.com/qQ2mZSOxhH

— WhoScored (@WhoScored) January 6, 2025

However, it’s rare to see such an accomplished player look so flustered at the elite level. In and out of possession, Alexander-Arnold was problematic. He gave away the ball too easily and never appeared positionally sure for the 86 minutes he was on the pitch. Slot’s decision to substitute him might even have come as a relief to the player. “Trent has played mostly very good games for the club,” said Slot after the match, attempting to explain the poor performance of his starting right back. “Today was not his best game, but that also had to do with them.

Sometimes Ryan [Gravenberch] was not close enough to him, so it was a two-on-one situation. “I don’t believe in those things,” Slot replied when asked if transfer speculation had affected Alexander-Arnold. “I think nine out of 10 people will tell you it affected him, but I am one of the 10 that tells you I don’t think that affected him. What affected him was that he had to play Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot, who are two starters for Portugal. Great, great, great players.” The pressure on Alexander-Arnold to perform amid rumours about his future could be further intensified by the presence of Conor Bradley as an option.

The Northern Irish youngster continues to impress as Liverpool’s right back of the future, so Slot could take Alexander-Arnold out of the team without much of a drop-off. Liverpool are on course for a special 2024/25 season as Premier League and Champions League table-topper. Still, the contract situation around Alexander-Arnold and Salah and Virgil van Dijk threatens to undermine their entire campaign. Sunday might have been the beginning of the end for their right back.

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