Trent Alexander-Arnold has been one of the major narratives of liverpoolThe weather of.
Maybe there is nothing new there. Except this term, it has been his off-field future – rather than his performances – that has been the subject of debate. The 26-year-old player is in the final year of his contract But while transfer speculations continued, he quietly continued to show everyone how world-class he is.
Alexander-Arnold’s priority since returning to pre-season in August has been to fully commit to this season, working under new head coach Arne Slott to achieve as much as he can.
As athletic This month’s report, Real Madrid have made him a priority target Because they want a long-term replacement for dani carvajalLiverpool, for their part, are desperate to keep him and discussions are ongoing about a new deal.
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Trent Alexander-Arnold’s Liverpool contract: what’s going on?
It will be easy for Alexander-Arnold to be distracted by outside noise, especially as we approach January 1, when he, along with mohammed salah And virgil van dijkThose who are also in the final year of their deals can talk to foreign clubs.
But the man himself has been steadfast in his desire to shut out the outside noise and, watching him perform, he doesn’t give you the impression that he has a potentially career-altering decision in front of him.
There is no point in his commitment wavering. He played despite a hamstring injury, which persisted till the end EnglandSecond International against finland two weeks ago. The scan revealed a minor problem that could be managed.
Trent Alexander-Arnold’s future is uncertain but his form is excellent (Naomi Baker/Getty Images)
Fellow right-back suffered a rib injury connor bradley This meant that Alexander-Arnold was determined to be available for the trip. chelseaWhile he is playing through the pain, he intends to make himself available until the pain subsides. Injury management helps explain why he was substituted in two matches since his return.
He has been instrumental in Liverpool’s sensational start to the campaign, helping them achieve 11 wins and keep seven clean sheets in their first 12 matches in all competitions.
Slott’s impact has been positive and Alexander-Arnold has enjoyed working with him. He has been impressed by the head coach’s attention to detail, with the pair holding regular one-to-one meetings to forensically analyze his games and discuss the positives and negatives of his performances. Alexander-Arnold is keen to receive constructive feedback and does not shy away from minor criticism when speaking to the slot media.
Alexander-Arnold told Slott he wants to be the defender no one wants to come up against, a significant leap from the widely shared outside view that he is weak defensively.
All of this has led to a change in the way Alexander-Arnold plays in the slot compared to Klopp in recent seasons, although this is more of a quiet evolution than a complete revolution.
Slott’s arrival as head coach was a fortuitous one Change in system and approach,
Introducing the double pivot in midfield, Liverpool look more balanced and after operating as an inverted full-back for almost 18 months, it has allowed the defender to operate in a more orthodox right-back role.
The placement of his touches makes this clear. Compared to last season, his touches have decreased in the middle of the pitch and increased in the right channel and in his own half.
The license to roam remains – his central position against Chelsea opened up space for Dominik Szoboszlai to launch the move that led to Liverpool’s winning goal – but it is more measured and selective.
His pass receiver map makes this even more clear. Last season, Alexander-Arnold was making more efforts by making short, quick passes to the midfielders and, at times, moving so far into the infield that he was able to exchange passes with left centre-back Van Dijk.
This season, he is much closer to the touchline and those channel balls to Salah and Szoboszlai occur far more often – as you would expect from an orthodox right-back.
Liverpool’s possession-based style under the slot aims to be more risk-adverse, aiming to make short passes through the pitch, rather than the approach under Klopp, which was more direct.
Alexander-Arnold’s passing ability One of the best in Europe, but his raking cross-field and line-breaking vertical passes can cause turnovers, highlighted by his low pass completion percentage.
Notably, in Premier LeagueHis numbers for these types of passes have decreased, with his long passes per 90 minutes decreasing from 20.7 to 14 and his switches decreasing from 1.3 to 0.9 per 90. He is also attempting fewer passes (down from 86.1 to 64.7 per 90), is having fewer touches of the ball overall (down from 95.9 per 90 to 73.8) and slightly fewer in the attacking third (22 of 24.3).
Despite those statistical declines, his influence has not diminished and he remains a creative force. The people around him, especially the technical midfield three, are reducing the burden on him.
From Liverpool’s open-play attacking line, Alexander-Arnold has the same number this season…
…With the guys from last season, he produced similar numbers with his chances and a slight increase in his involvement in the build-up phase.
Of all Premier League defenders, only Tottenham’s Pedro Porro (14) has created more chances from open play than Alexander-Arnold (11). Among Liverpool players, only Salah (15) has scored more, with Szoboszlai tied with 11. His expected assist total is also the same as last season, which shows that the quality of the chances he is creating remains high.
Occupying the right channel can give him more room to showcase his quality.
He picked the perfect time to release Salah on the opening day of the season and provide the ‘pre-assist’ for Diogo Jota’s goal…
…and slipped Luis Diaz against Bournemouth and blasted in from deep to get his first Premier League assist of the season.
During a recent interview sky sportsSlott discussed the idea of risk versus reward and then asked specifically about Alexander-Arnold’s unique ability.
“Talking about risk and reward! And what choices he makes in that moment, so he’s one of those players who can make better decisions at times,” Slott said.
“But to have a right full-back who is so special with the ball, yes, it’s an extra quality that Liverpool have had for so many years, and I’m quite lucky to still have that, because how many full-backs Create so many chances for their team? Therefore, he should keep bringing this risk into his game and also look for other options at certain moments.
“But I also have to point out how well he is defending. So, I’m seeing a player who is stepping up his game, which was hardly possible because he was already so good, but he still does it, and that’s a good thing.
Alexander-Arnold has been working hard to improve his defense, and the stats show he is making progress.
While the sample size is still small this season, in the Premier League he is attempting 2.8 tackles per 90 with a success rate of 71.4 per cent, an increase from 1.6 tackles per 90 last season with a success rate of 66.7 per cent , and is the highest. Over the last seven seasons. He is also making 5.2 tackles per 1000 opposition touches, the most in the last seven seasons and a significant step up from the 2.9 tackles he made last season.
Alexander-Arnold’s defensive game has tightened up this season (Maja Hitij/Getty Images)
The benefits of the revised formation are also being felt with Alexander-Arnold now in a better position to recover and face opposition wingers. In the eye test, he is being caught in a reduced position, with Ibrahima Konate not tasked with playing both right centre-back and right-back as he was at times last season. Not having to go through long recovery runs to get back into position should also have a positive effect, meaning he is not getting tired before facing a fresh, difficult or fast winger.
Alexander-Arnold has dribbled only 28 percent of the time against an attacker this season – his second lowest from the last seven seasons (26 percent in 2020-21) and a significant improvement on the 61 percent from last season.
Liverpool’s relatively merciful opening fixture list, which Slott has often referred to, suggests tough defensive tests are still to come, but in tough matches against AC Milan’s Rafael Leao and Chelsea’s Jadon Sancho and Pedro Neto, they Have passed the test.
There is confidence in his performances for England under interim manager Lee Carsley. Three man of the match awards in four games, as well as a sensational free kick against Finland, helped put the European Championship disappointment behind him. Gareth Southgate immediately abandoned the experiment of playing Alexander-Arnold as a number 6 in a double pivot, and he found minutes limited as the tournament progressed.
He may be making headlines because of his off-field situation, but in the short term, he is doing what is necessary – and Liverpool are reaping the rewards.
(Top photo: Carl Racine/Getty Images)
(TagstoTranslate)Liverpool(T)Premier League