Liverpool restriction could *actually* turn Alexander-Arnold into world’s best right-back
Date published: Friday 10th March 2023 8:17 -
Will Ford
Trent Alexander-Arnold has been forced to defend and do little else. He’s actually pretty good at it and when he’s granted attacking freedom again he should be better than ever.
Jurgen Klopp said after
Liverpool’s drubbing of Manchester United that it was a result and performance of “last seasons”, back when Liverpool were quite brilliant and United really weren’t.
And there were some throwbacks – intensity, fine finishing, midfield swarming – but also notable differences, even from last season, when they doled out a 9-0 aggregate spanking of United across their two Premier League clashes.
Among the most remarkable differences, and this is far from a one-off this season, but was particularly stark given the flurry of goals, was the lack of attacking involvement of Trent Alexander-Arnold. No goals, no assists; not even a pre-assist.
Despite four of the seven goals coming from Liverpool’s right, Alexander-Arnold was nowhere to be seen, save for the seventh, in which he played no part but was on hand in the penalty area to celebrate with Roberto Firmino. By that juncture he could resist his curbed attacking urges no longer.
Alexander-Arnold averaged an assist every 3.5 games for Liverpool before this season, and has just three in 34 appearances in this curious campaign.
When previously he would be a short pass away from Mohamed Salah, poised in space behind him to deliver a pinpoint cross or ready at any moment to overlap, Alexander-Arnold was instead seemingly fused to Ibrahima Konate in the defensive line against Manchester United, like a table football full-back.
It can’t be an accident. Klopp has clearly told Alexander-Arnold to suppress his attacking compulsion.
It was necessary, and is clearly working in Liverpool’s favour. They scored seven goals, but also kept a clean sheet – their fifth on the bounce in the Premier League.
And Alexander-Arnold stood out, not for his brilliance in the attacking third, but for his tackling, sniffing-out of danger and positioning. Alexander-Arnold had an excellent game despite contributing so little, relatively, in attack. He was operating as a run-of-the-mill full-back, defending above all.
He’s good at it. The swathes of criticism weren’t aimed at him because he
couldn’t defend, but because he
didn’t.
Apparently, enough was enough for Klopp. And like a parent who’s told their child they can’t have pudding before they finish their main meal only to find carrots behind the radiator and the dog steadily putting on weight, Klopp has kept the ice cream firmly locked away in the freezer. Defending comes first – and recently for Alexander-Arnold – last as well.
Klopp had little choice. Alexander-Arnold is his only right-back and Liverpool need his defensive nous more than his swagger. In their pomp he often got away with being caught up field or failing to defend the back post effectively; Liverpool would often score more than the opposition anyway, and the centre-backs alongside him would inevitably save his blushes when his mind and body wandered.
For a while he was considered to be one of the best right-backs in the world, but the ‘attacking’ prefix had more recently become a requirement, with detractors reasonably pointing out that right-backs should at least try to defend.
It was evident on Sunday that Liverpool’s forwards are their strength. They would be even more prolific with Alexander-Arnold operating further up the pitch, but the team isn’t currently operating in ideal circumstances.
When Klopp gets a couple of midfielders, another centre-back and whatever else he requires to rebuild his team and squad, Alexander-Arnold can once again become the attacking force we have all drooled over for so long. This isn’t a permanent change.
But it should have a lasting effect, and that’s a huge positive for Liverpool, England and Alexander-Arnold himself. Having previously got away with not defending, he actually appears to begrudge the requirement less and less with each game of this stipulated fallow period.
And when he is granted the freedom to raid down the right once more, the experience of months of defending and little else will be ingrained. One of the world’s best attacking full-backs might be able to drop that ‘A’ word.
