Super agent Rob Segal has claimed that Trent Alexander-Arnold is in urgent need of a rest from Liverpool’s starting XI.
The 23-year-old has received heavy criticism for his performance during the Reds’ 4-1 defeat to Napoli in the Champions League last night and Segal has claimed that ‘you can feel the arrogance’ of the England international.
Alexander-Arnold, as well as a number of his teammates, lacked hard work and commitment against the Italian outfit and Luciano Spalletti’s side were worthy winners.
Segal, who overlooked transfers including Rob Van Persie’s move to Arsenal and Marcel Desailly to Chelsea, highlighted that no matter how the No. 66 performs, he’s almost guaranteed to start the next game due to the lack of adequate reinforcements at right back.
“Liverpool have major injury problems which haven’t helped and a player like Trent Alexander-Arnold probably needs a prolonged rest,” Segal told Caught Offside.
“However, because of his standing within the club, you can feel his arrogance when he is slowly running back to goal. Alexander-Arnold knows that no matter what he does, right or wrong, he is likely to start week in, week out.
“It is no secret that Alexander-Arnold is a lot better going forward than he is defensively, so his weaknesses need to be covered and unfortunately for Klopp, at the moment, none of his side’s backline are playing particularly well. The timing of their drop-off in form has been really unfortunate.”
Joe Gomez and James Milner have been deployed at right back by Klopp in the past but it’s clear that full back is not their preferred position.
Alexander-Arnold is one of the best passers of the ball in the world football but his defensive ability is now being questioned on a regular basis.
He doesn’t have the same aggression or hunger when he’s running back towards his own goal as he does when going forward.
Although he and Andy Robertson have reinvented the full back position in recent years, the basics of working hard and helping out your teammates should never be questioned.
For many in a Red shirt last night, that was sadly the case.
Gomez was hooked at half time in Naples and was replaced by Joel Matip who helped steady the ship during the second half.
Our captain on the night, Milner, worked hard as usual but he was outclassed in the middle of the park.
Thiago entered the fray on the hour mark and we instantly appeared to gain some sort of control over the middle of the pitch for the first time all night – the way in which the Spaniard floats around the pitch and connects play is a joy to watch.
We now need to ensure he remains fit as we look to climb the Premier League table and ensure qualification from our Champions League group.
#Ep58 of The Empire of the Kop Podcast: Rating Liverpool’s UCL group, making a new signing… & more!