Trent Alexander-Arnold set to prove his critics wrong this season with new Liverpool contract

[ad_1]

Trent Alexander-Arnold is a man who may think he has something to prove as the new season approaches after being occasionally criticized in the last campaign for Liverpool. After signing a new contract, which runs until 2025 and makes him one of the club’s best employees, the 22-year-old will want to remind critics how talented he is.

The role of the right-back in the squad had to change over the course of the season, as injuries to center-backs Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Jol Matip altered the extent to which Alexander-Arnold could freely roam the right side of the field. However, the Liverpool man still found seven assists and two goals, including a vital last-minute winner against Aston Villa late in the season.

Alexander-Arnold has been named the PFA Team of the Year twice, also part of the FIFA World XI on one occasion. Not to mention the 2019 PFA Young Player of the Season and Premier League Young Player of the Season won in 2019, obtained after helping the Reds end their 30-year wait for a league title. It seems these achievements were overlooked by pundits and rival fans in the last campaign.

Read more related articles Read more related articles

Liverpool’s number 66 was originally named to England’s squad for this summer’s Euro 2020 tournament, but missed out after sustaining a thigh injury in the tournament’s final warm-up match. It was heartbreaking for Alexander-Arnold, who England manager Gareth Southgate said would have made the final group after much speculation about his inclusion.

Alexander-Arnold has spent his offseason recovering from injury so he can enter Liverpool’s pre-season camp eager to go with the squad and he looks to have taken a bit of muscle, judging by the photos Liverpool have posted of their camp. It could be something Alexander-Arnold wanted to do himself or it could be something the coaching staff advised him to do. Whatever the reason, this is something that certainly won’t stop him from entering the new season.

The 22-year-old’s own performances in the 2018/19 and 2019/20 seasons mean that expectations of what he can do are exceptionally high, especially as he broke the record for most Assists by a defender (with 12), before doing better in the following campaign. Only Manchester City talisman Kevin De Bruyne has created more chances than the Liverpool man since the 18/19 season, and he is an attacking midfielder playing in a fluid side of Pep Guardiola.

Read more related articles Read more related articles

The main reason Alexander-Arnold finds himself criticized is that people think he can be sensitive when defending himself one-on-one. When you think about what the Reds have won and who they have played against in European competition in recent years, it’s hard to see where the criticism is coming from with that. One performance that was a real coming-of-age moment was the Champions League quarter-final when Liverpool took over Manchester City in 2018, with Alexander-Arnold giving Leroy San nothing for food. . Clearly, the club have no concerns: the new contract is a sign of faith.

Jrgen Klopps right-back was part of a team that recorded 34 clean sheets in the previous three seasons, so his defensive weakness is a bit of a myth. What was not taken into account last season is that Alexander-Arnold used to have Matip or Gomez by his side to support him, but due to the injury crisis at the Reds , it was largely Nathanial Phillips who found himself in this position. The timely return of Liverpool’s three favorite center-backs, as well as the arrival of Ibrahima Konat, are sure to give the full-back a boost.

Alexander-Arnold will see the coming season as one where he can silence the critics and once again become an integral part of a Liverpool side that will aim for glory in both the Champions League and the Premier League. The new contract is just the start.

Read more related articles Read more related articles

[ad_2]