Arsenal legend Thierry Henry was full of praise for Conor Bradley after Liverpool's superb 2-0 Champions League victory over Real Madrid at Anfield
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Kylian Mbappe centre-forward of Real Madrid and France and Conor Bradley right-back of Liverpool and Northern Ireland compete for the ball during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD5 match between Liverpool FC and Real Madrid C.F. at Anfield on November 27, 2024 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Conor Bradley cleans out Kylian Mbappe with a hard but fair challenge that brought Anfield to its feet during Liverpool's stunning 2-0 win over Real Madrid
(Image: Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Trent Alexander-Arnold, his Liverpool future and the transfer links to Real Madrid may have been one of the subplots to the narrative of last night's huge Champions League showdown. But by the end of another famous European night at Anfield, all the talk was about the right-back who took the place of the England international in the Reds' starting line-up.
With Alexander-Arnold deemed fit enough only for a place on the bench after recovering from a hamstring injury, Liverpool head coach Arne Slot once again placed his faith in youngster Conor Bradley.
And the 21-year-old certainly did not let anyone down. In fact, Bradley was to many the Reds' best player, and fingers will now be crossed at the AXA Training Centre that the Northern Ireland international has not suffered a serious injury.
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Bradley came off late on after an incredible individual display against the reigning European champions, the highlight of which was a bone-crunching tackle on Madrid and France superstar Kylian Mbappe, who would later miss a penalty before Cody Gakpo scored to add to Alexis Mac Allister's opener and seal a famous 2-0 win for Liverpool.
Bradley's performance was raved about with one of the newest members to his ever-growing fan club being Arsenal and France great Thierry Henry.
“That (tackle) for me, already did set the tone,” Henry said on CBS Sports. “Boom! That’s it. When you go into someone like that at the beginning of the game, you’re going to struggle.
“We see him making that run (forwards), every time - he fancied it. You could see, he fancied himself against Mbappe. Everything he did was spot on. We were waiting for (Mohamed) Salah, we were waiting for Mbappe, but we saw Conor Bradley, so fair play to him.”
Henry added: “Conor Bradley was just outstanding. I think he didn’t have to do a lot defensively because Mbappe didn’t do a lot offensively. So, it became very easy.”
Speaking on BBC ’s Champions League highlights programme, former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy also paid tribute to Bradley and the challenge on Mbappe that brought Anfield to its feet.
Murphy said: “This was probably the biggest roar of the night. It’s the athleticism and the timing and also the courage to do it. There’s no respect. The ball needs winning. Doesn’t matter who you are.
"When you see a young player play in arguably his biggest game against one of the best players in Europe on such a huge occasion with a pressurised atmosphere and perform like that, it’s incredible really. I think he’s got a great future.
"I know there’s a lot of talk about Trent at the moment, but what a player to come in and fill in the gaps for him.”