Trent Alexander-Arnold is ready to see a well-recognized face from his Liverpool days as Real Madrid put together to face Manchester City
Trent Alexander-Arnold has confronted points throughout his first season at Real Madrid(Image: Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images)
Trent Alexander-Arnold is ready to be reunited with former Liverpool coach Pep Lijnders when Real Madrid face Manchester City within the Champions League. The two sides are getting ready for the primary leg of their spherical of 16 tie on the Bernabeu.
The right-back departed Liverpool and sealed a transfer to Los Blancos final summer season. While Alexander-Arnold was pivotal to the Reds’ success in recent times, accidents have restricted his affect throughout his first 12 months in Spain.
There was current hypothesis that the England worldwide could leave Madrid on the finish of the season, although these claims have since been disputed. After overcoming his health points, Alexander-Arnold has regained his place within the workforce underneath supervisor Alvaro Arbeloa and is vying to start out in opposition to City.
Pep Guardiola’s assistant coach Lijnders arguably understands Alexander-Arnold’s recreation higher than anybody. The Dutchman coached the full-back during his time in Liverpool’s academy earlier than additional influencing him as a part of the primary workforce employees for nearly all of Jurgen Klopp’s tenure at Anfield. Here, Mirror Football seems on the pair’s relationship forward of the massive Champions League conflict.
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Man City transfer hyperlinks
Alexander-Arnold’s troublesome begin to his first 12 months in Madrid led to rumours about his future through the January transfer window. Reports in Spain recommended that new boss Arbeloa had instructed the defender to think about leaving the membership and City were tentatively linked with a move for the previous Liverpool star.
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The 27-year-old redefined how the right-back position was perceived throughout his time in England. His partnership with Mohamed Salah contributed to Liverpool profitable the Premier League, Champions League and several other different main honours throughout his time on the membership.
While the reviews relating to Alexander-Arnold’s future in Madrid have been disputed, he would have improved City’s present right-back choices. The transfer additionally would have enabled him to work with Lijnders once more, who joined City’s teaching employees final summer season.
Text from coach
Lijnders shared his admiration for Alexander-Arnold in his 2022 guide Intensity – Inside Liverpool FC. The coach recalled his pleasure at studying the academy graduate had been named within the membership’s new management group and revealed his messages to Klopp concerning the then-22-year-old.
“Jurgen forwarded me a text with the result of the votes for the players’ committee. There were three spots left behind our captain Hendo, vice-captain Milner and leader Virgil,” Lijnders wrote.
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“I was delighted to discover that Trent was in! Our future captain was a step closer – he should now stay close to Milner to learn as much as possible during this year because it’s the next step in his development. Robbo and Ali were the other two to make the players’ committee.
“Trent had asked to meet me in pre-season for a chat and we sat together for an hour discussing his game. One of the main things he wanted to discuss as well was making sure me and Jurgen knew he wanted to be in now and not be missed out because he was young or maybe a bit less vocal before games than others. I replied to the boss, ‘Trent is in, TOP, he represents so much of our club.’”
New position
During his time at Liverpool, the membership experimented with Alexander-Arnold moving into midfield from full-back. The thought of the defender utilising the half-spaces was conjured up by Klopp and his employees throughout pre-season in 2021.
Alexander-Arnold had performed in midfield underneath Lijnders for Liverpool U16s. While shifting into the center of the pitch didn’t all the time have the specified impact, the assistant coach believed the full-back could still add dimensions to his game.
“There’s no limit to him,” Lijnders stated in 2022 at an occasion marking the discharge of his guide. “I think it’s really important for his game that he is close to Milly and Hendo and this leadership group. If you saw in pre-season, the games he played he has reached a new level in my opinion.
“The manner he has dominated the appropriate facet each offensively and defensively, he’s simply outstanding. If I see this boy, he simply makes me actually proud as a result of he trains the identical manner as when he was 15.
”The smile, the fire and our relationship is very strong. You don’t have many captains in your life as a coach, hopefully – because if you have many it means you are at many different clubs and that’s not a good sign – but the captains you have are really special because of the bond between a manager and a captain.”
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