Liverpool chairman Tom Werner has thanked Trent Alexander-Arnold for his impact at the club, insisting he has no hard feelings at the 26-year-old’s decision to leave the Reds.
Alexander-Arnold joined Real Madrid this summer, with the 15-time European champions paying a fee of up to £10million ($14M) for him to leave his contract at Liverpool early and play in the Club World Cup for Los Blancos.
The right-back has featured in all three games in the US, with Real topping the group on Friday thanks to a 3-0 win over RB Salzburg, and setting up a last-16 tie against Juventus in Miami.
While some Liverpool fans felt frustration at Alexander-Arnold’s decision to leave - he was booed at Anfield in his penultimate appearance for the Reds - Werner doesn’t share any sense of resentment.
“We do respect the fact that Trent has moved on,” he said in an interview with the Liverpool Echo. “I told someone recently this story about seeing Trent on the last weekend of the season, with Billy [Hogan, CEO] and I just wanted him to know from me personally, we are, and were as a club, thankful for all his contributions.
“He showed me a picture when he was seven years old, when he was a young kid at the academy.
“I have a lot of fondness for all that he has done and so it is time for him to move and time for us to replace him.
Trent Alexander-Arnold
Alexander-Arnold's corner against Barcelona will last long in the memory.
“We do wish him well and I understand the emotions of supporters who were disappointed, and we were disappointed too, but it is overshadowed by my wonderful memories of him.”
In the 354 appearances for Liverpool, one memory stands out most clearly for Werner.
“I'll never forget that pass he made, the corner he took, for the fourth goal against Barcelona,” he revealed.
“That was just a work of genius and as a football fan, watching some of his assists, the way he would pass the ball 30-plus yards to a specific point and create a goal was just...no wonder Real Madrid are delighted.”
Xabi Alonso and Trent Alexander-Arnold
Alexander-Arnold played the full 90 minutes against RB Leipzig. (Image: Getty Images)
Alexander-Arnold played the full 90 minutes in the victory over RB Leipzig, the first time he has completed a match since moving from Liverpool.
The England international played in a right wing-back role, a position that forced him to hug the touchline rather than cutting inside.
It’s a job Alexander-Anrold may grow used to as Xabi Alonso deployed wing-backs in the 3-5-2 system he preferred at Bayer Leverkusen.