Trent Alexander-Arnold had spent the afternoon on the front foot, driving Bournemouth to distraction, and things were not going to change now the game was over.
Liverpool’s right-back is 100 days away from being able to talk to foreign clubs about signing terms with them next summer and there remains no indication that the uncertainty around his future will suddenly be ended by the presentation of a new Anfield deal.
For high-profile players in such situations, there are two possible routes to follow. The first involves ducking all media commitments and remaining tight-lipped. The other is to be open, clear and in control. It was no surprise, then, to see which option Alexander-Arnold took.
‘Look, I have been at the club 20-years now,’ Alexander-Arnold replied when asked directly about his situation. ‘I have signed four or five contract extensions and none of those have been played out in public – and this one won’t be either.
‘I have always said I want to captain the club – that is an aim and a goal of mine, whether that happens is out of my hands. I want to be a Liverpool player this season (as a minimum) is what I will say. The most important thing is always trophies if I am honest. This season we are looking really good.’
Whether that will settle the nerves of those who are fretting he will walk into Real Madrid’s open arms next summer remains to be seen. Alexander-Arnold is a rare jewel and his display in a thumping 3-0 win, secured by a Luis Diaz double and Darwin Nunez crackerjack, kept catching your eye.
The highlight was the sweeping cross-field run and pass that provided Diaz with his second strike in two thrilling minutes, an assist that means he has now had 100 goal involvements for Liverpool – some creative midfielders wouldn’t have such prolific numbers.
[data-podcast-container] #embed-iframe-wrapper {
min-height: 160px;
}
[data-podcast-container] header#podcast-container-header {
transform: none !important;
}
It would, plainly, be a calamity if Liverpool could not keep this local heartbeat in their team but one thing firmly in their favour is the rapport he is building with head coach Arne Slot: change in the dugout has not been unsettling. If anything, the opposite is true.
Alexander-Arnold has started this campaign with invigoration, shining like a beacon in Nations League assignments against the Republic of Ireland and Finland for England while doing the same for Liverpool. Slot is certainly in his fan club but hasn’t got on side by massaging the player’s ego.
‘It is really refreshing to have a manager who will help and guide and teach me how to be better as a player,’ said the 25-year-old. ‘I’m someone who wants to learn; someone who wants to be the best and someone who strives to be the best ever.’
The assumption would be he will reach such exalted levels through what he does in opposition danger zones but it is misplaced. Defenders, whatever their station, will be judged on what happens in front of their own goal and Slot was thrilled with his No 66’s shift against Bournemouth.
‘We kind of talked about targets and aims and I said to him that I would like to be the defender that no one wants to come up against in Europe,’ said Alexander-Arnold, who is understandably proud of Liverpool’s start of just one goal conceded in five Premier League games.
‘We agreed that he will be harsh on me. If any time an attacker gets past me, he will call it out in (team) meetings and individual meetings and say this cannot happen. We go through every game together and he highlights where he wants me to improve.
‘Even in the AC Milan game (last Tuesday) we had about 20 clips going through what I could have done better and the good parts as well. Defences win championships that is the old saying and being part of that defence means I have responsibilities to make sure my winger doesn’t get a sniff.’
Comments are closed.