Liverpool news: Trent Alexander-Arnold’s feelings clear as Real Madrid sent warning

A superb start to the Premier League campaign by Arne Slot’s side has unravelled in the past week, with Liverpool falling behind Arsenal in the title race

Liverpool will be hoping to bounce back against their great rivals Manchester United once the international break comes to an end. A superb start to the Premier League campaign by Arne Slot’s side has unravelled in the past week.

With five wins out of five, the reigning champions were five points clear of second-placed Arsenal. However, a 96th-minute strike gave Chelsea the win over the Reds at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. This followed a 97th-minute winner for Crystal Palace a week earlier.

Liverpool have also lost away to Galatasaray in the Champions League. The Reds made headlines this summer strengthening their squad with expensive additions such as Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak.

However, it appears Slot’s pricey array of stars are still finding their feet. Mirror Football takes a look at all the latest news coming out of Anfield, with Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ibrahima Konate making headlines.

Trent Alexander-Arnold agreement reached

Liverpool’s rocky patch is partly down to the absence of Alexander-Arnold, according to legends of the game, Gary Lineker and Jamie Redknapp.

Alexander-Arnold left for Real Madrid in the summer, and Liverpool boss Slot has looked to Conor Bradley and £29.5million summer recruit Jeremie Frimpong to fill the void left by Alexander-Arnold.

READ MORE: Florian Wirtz behaviour in training speaks volumes as Liverpool struggles continueREAD MORE: Rio Ferdinand convinced Steven Gerrard is ready to say YES to Rangers return

However, Slot has rotated the pair and even used midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai in the right-back position as the Dutchman looks to find a permanent solution to the loss of Alexander-Arnold.

Speaking on the Rest is Football podcast following Liverpool’s defeat by Chelsea, Lineker said: “In terms of creativity, as much as anything else, I think they’re really missing Trent [Alexander-Arnold].

“Before that, sometimes Trent would go forward and they would, perhaps, get exposed defensively. But what he gives you going the other way, it’s impossible to replace. There is not another player I can think of in world football who plays that position [right-back] in the way that he plays it offensively.

“I also think that Mo [Salah] is missing him, that connection that they had. Yes, sometimes they would get exposed in behind, but they would have someone try and cover that position – last season it was mostly [Dominik] Szoboszlai, previous to that would be Jordan Henderson.

“You’ve got to say it was worth his weight in gold going forward, and I always used to say, ‘Stop worrying about him [Alexander-Arnold] making the odd tiny mistake defensively, because what he gives you the other way is incredible.”

Lineker’s feelings echo former Reds midfielder Redknapp’s thoughts. Last weekend as he said: “They’ve got problems at full-back. They’re missing Trent [Alexander-Arnold]. They haven’t played the same right-back since the Burnley game. Bradley had a tough 45 minutes.”

Alexander-Arnold’s Anfield exit was a precarious one. The defender was met with boos when he was brought on against Arsenal at Anfield immediately after his announcement that he would leave the club this past summer.

The defender himself had always been open about how difficult it would be for him to move on too, having said prior to his free transfer: “I’ll always be a Liverpool fan.”

Real Madrid warning

Another element to Liverpool’s poor run of form has been the performances of French centre-back Konate. His showings have emerged as one of the primary discussion points throughout the campaign, with Liverpool appearing shaky at the back.

The 26-year-old’s deal expires next summer, leaving the Reds facing an increasing prospect of losing him on a free transfer, with Real Madrid set to pounce. However, former Man United star Rio Ferdinand has argued that rumours around Konate’s future are the reason he has been made a scapegoat for the Reds’ recent woes.

“There’s no way that Konate has a bad performance last season and he’s getting the headline treatment,” Ferdinand said. “It’s only because of the interest from Real Madrid, and there’s going to be disgruntled fans or people in the media who support Liverpool who are going to now start pointing the finger and blaming him.

“Or, whenever there’s a little mistake here, and if there’s blame to be put between two people, then he’ll probably get it now because of that situation.”

Former Liverpool and Wolves defender Conor Coady has also maintained that Konate’s deficiencies this season are actually due to insufficient assistance on the pitch. He said: “I look from a centre-back’s point of view and Konate is getting a bit of stick at the start of the season, let’s be honest.

“But you’ve got to remember he has got to play a different way now. What I mean by that is that he’s having to defend in the channel now because Frimpong or Conor Bradley are out of position or Szoboszlai is out of midfield.”

He continued: “Teams exploited that channel and Konate has got to go out and defend and I’m telling you now, from a centre-back’s point of view, you do not want to go out there and defend as a right-back. It’s hard, there’s a reason you’re not out there, you’re not quick enough.”

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