Former Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold was hounded on social media for suspect defending in his first two games at the Club World Cup for his new side, Real Madrid.
He suffered no such lapses on Thursday in Philadelphia as the English International put forth what he called his "best game." Los Blancos cruised to a tidy 3-0 win over RB Salzburg to earn a date in the knockout round against Juventus.
First-year Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso tinkered with his formation, slotting defensive midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni into central defender between new signing Dean Huijsen and Antonio Rudiger. For the first time in half a decade, Alexander-Arnold was deployed as a wing-back.
"I think everyone has got to get used to it. It worked, clearly," he said of the tweak. "That’s a good start. Still, obviously a lot of work to do; it wasn’t a perfect game. But good signs, our best game so far. We’re all very happy with the win and a good start so far."
Alexander-Arnold admitted to the press postgame that he's still struggling with the language barrier, as it's harder to participate in most chats simply because he isn't fully confident in Spanish.
"The language," the 26-year-old revealed as the biggest difference between Liverpool and Real Madrid. "But at the end of the day, it’s football. You play with different players, of course, speaking and being part of the conversations is harder."
Xabi Alonso
Alonso and Alexander-Arnold have kicked off well (Image: Getty Images)
"You work hard to understand what people are saying, but when you step out onto the pitch, you know your role, you understand it.
Still, Alexander-Arnold revealed that Alonso has gone the extra mile to ensure he understands everything he's being told from a tactical point of view.
"The manager speaks to me a lot, so I understand everything that gets said," he said.
Madrid will face an undermanned Juventus squad in the Round of 16. Alexander-Arnold emphasized that the opponent doesn't matter: Madrid will be locked in all the same.
"Is it better to play Juventus or Manchester City? It depends on who you ask," he said. "Both are really good teams, both have got out of the group. It was always going to be difficult, whoever we come up against.
"But we can only play who’s in front of us.
"We have expectations to go and win the game no matter who it’s against. We don’t underestimate any team.
"We’re not sat here happy that it’s Juventus instead of Man City but... our aim is to go and win the tournament, so that means to beat whoever is in front of us.