Trent Alexander-Arnold will come up against his former Liverpool coach Pep Lijnders when Real Madrid face Manchester City in the Champions League on Wednesday
Jake Bayliss
09:58, 11 Mar 2026
Trent Alexander-Arnold of Real Madrid
Trent Alexander-Arnold has faced issues during his first season at Real Madrid(Image: Getty Images)
Trent Alexander-Arnold is poised to come face-to-face with his former Liverpool coach Pep Lijnders when Real Madrid take on Manchester City in the Champions League.
The clubs are gearing up for the opening leg of their last-16 Champions League encounter at the Bernabeu. The right-back left Liverpool to join Madrid last summer. While Alexander-Arnold was instrumental in the Reds' recent triumphs, injuries have hindered his influence during his debut season in Spain.
Recent reports suggested the England star might depart Madrid at the end of the season, though those claims have since been refuted. Having overcome his fitness setbacks, Alexander-Arnold has reclaimed his spot in the side under boss Alvaro Arbeloa and is competing for a starting berth against City.
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Pep Guardiola's number two, Lijnders, arguably knows Alexander-Arnold's abilities better than most. The Dutchman worked with the full-back during his days in Liverpool's youth setup before continuing to shape his development as a member of the senior coaching staff throughout nearly all of Jurgen Klopp's reign at Anfield.
Here, Liverpool.com examines their connection ahead of the crucial Champions League showdown.
Man City transfer links
Alexander-Arnold's challenging debut season in Madrid sparked speculation about his future during the January transfer window. Spanish media reports claimed new manager Arbeloa had suggested the defender explore options elsewhere, with City briefly mooted as a potential destination for the ex-Liverpool player.
Pep Guardiola and Pep Lijnders
Pep Lijnders joined Manchester City's coaching staff last summer(Image: Getty Images)
The 27-year-old revolutionized the right-back role during his spell in England. His understanding with Mohamed Salah helped Liverpool secure the Premier League title, Champions League trophy, and numerous other major silverware during his Anfield career.
While speculation about Alexander-Arnold's Madrid future was contested, he would have strengthened City's current right-back options. Such a transfer would also have reunited him with Lijnders, who joined City's backroom team last summer.
Message from coach
Lijnders expressed his respect for Alexander-Arnold in his 2022 book: 'Intensity – Inside Liverpool FC.'
The coach described his delight upon discovering the academy product had been selected for the club's new leadership group and disclosed his communications to Klopp about the then-22-year-old.
"Jurgen forwarded me a text with the result of the votes for the players' committee. There were three spots left behind our captain Hendo, vice-captain Milner and leader Virgil," Lijnders wrote.
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"I was delighted to discover that Trent was in! Our future captain was a step closer – he should now stay close to Milner to learn as much as possible during this year because it's the next step in his development. Robbo and Ali were the other two to make the players' committee.
"Trent had asked to meet me in pre-season for a chat and we sat together for an hour discussing his game. One of the main things he wanted to discuss as well was making sure me and Jurgen knew he wanted to be in now and not be missed out because he was young or maybe a bit less vocal before games than others.
"I replied to the boss, 'Trent is in, TOP, he represents so much of our club.'"