word comment speaks volumes as Liverpool agreement reached

Trent Alexander-Arnold's six-word comment speaks volumes as Liverpool agreement reached

We are two months into the 2025/26 season and it seems neither Liverpool nor Trent Alexander-Arnold have benefitted from the defender's summer transfer to Real Madrid

Gary Lineker agrees with comments made by Jamie Redknapp about Liverpool ‘missing’ Trent Alexander-Arnold this season. Alexander-Arnold made his dream, albeit controversial, move to Real Madrid in the summer after months of speculation over his future.

His announcement in May was met with immediate fury as many die-hard Reds could not understand why he would want to leave his boyhood club for what they considered a major European rival. Another cause for anger was the impression that Alexander-Arnold had intentionally run his contract down, which meant Liverpool were not compensated for his transfer.

The right-back was booed when substituted on against Arsenal at Anfield immediately after the announcement. And after being publicly defended by Andy Robertson and former manager Jurgen Klopp, the reception was more mixed in his final game as he was moved to tears.

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OPINION

Arne Slot hoped that promising defender Conor Bradley and £29.5million summer signing Jeremie Frimpong would comfortably fill the shoes of Alexander-Arnold, who had often been accused of shoddy defending despite his world class quality on the ball.

But former Match of the Day host Lineker believes Slot’s side are missing the 27-year-old’s impact in attack this season. Speaking on the Rest is Football podcast after Liverpool’s 2-1 defeat to Chelsea in the Premier League, marking their third consecutive loss, Lineker said: "In terms of creativity, as much as anything else, I think they're really missing Trent [Alexander-Arnold].

"Before that, sometimes Trent would go forward and they would, perhaps, get exposed defensively. But what he gives you going the other way, it's impossible to replace.

"There is not another player I can think of in world football who plays that position [right-back] in the way that he plays it offensively.

"I also think that Mo [Salah] is missing him, that connection that they had. Yes, sometimes they would get exposed in behind, but they would have someone try and cover that position - last season it was mostly [Dominik] Szoboszlai, previous to that would be Jordan Henderson.

"You've got to say it was worth his weight in gold going forward, and I always used to say, 'Stop worrying about him [Alexander-Arnold] making the odd tiny mistake defensively, because what he gives you the other way is incredible."

It echoed former Reds midfielder Redknapp’s assessment last weekend as he said: "They've got problems at full-back. They're missing Trent [Alexander-Arnold].

"They haven't played the same right-back since the Burnley game. [Conor] Bradley had a tough 45 minutes.”

With the pair’s comments in mind and several months passing for fan frustration to simmer, perhaps it is clearer to see now just how much Alexander-Arnold offered Liverpool. The defender himself was always open about how difficult it would be for him to move on too, having said prior to his free transfer: "I’ll always be a Liverpool fan."

Alexander-Arnold told the official Liverpool website when explaining his decision to leave: "I’ve sacrificed everything, I’ve done everything I’ve ever needed to do to try to help the team win games. And no matter what, that will never change.

"I’ll forever be a fan of the club, there’ll be no change in that. I’ll always be watching the games, I’ll be supporting from a distance. But in terms of a player at the club I think now is the right time for me to move on and challenge myself elsewhere."

It spoke volumes of the player’s love for the club, and his tough start to life in the Spanish capital may have made the homesickness that much worse. Alexander-Arnold did not hit the ground running for Real Madrid in his first few games, failing to record any goals or assists.

He had already begun to receive criticism before his injury against Marseille last month, with sections of the Spanish press preferring club legend Dani Carvajal’s more all-action and passionate take on the same position.

Alexander-Arnold may still not be fit to play when Los Blancos next face Getafe after the international break, as well as the El Clasico afterwards, by which point he would have been out for six weeks in total. A tantalising reunion with former club Liverpool might be more realistic in the Champions league on November 4.

It is unknown how the Anfield faithful will react in that scenario, but these past few months may have just given them enough time to reflect on his exceptional service across two decades with the club.

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