Trent Alexander-Arnold came out victorious in his meeting with ex-Liverpool team-mate Curtis Jones
Curtis Jones
Curtis Jones was at fault for Real Madrid's first goal(Image: Getty Images)
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Trent Alexander-Arnold and Curtis Jones came in for criticism from Spanish and Italian media following their Champions League reunion. The former Liverpool pair were on opposite sides as Real Madrid ran out 2-1 winners over Inter Milan.
Alexander-Arnold, who is looking to kick-start his Los Blancos career under Jose Mourinho, was deployed in midfield, meaning he was a direct opponent of Jones, who joined the Serie A champions in the summer.
Jones had a nightmare start to the game, losing the ball in the build-up to Kylian Mbappe giving Real the lead against the run of play. Jones wasn't solely to blame, with Yann Aurel Bisseck slow to react to the danger on the edge of the box.
The Football Italia website brutally described the moment as a "brain f***" while Spanish title AS accused Jones "falling asleep" as he lost the ball.
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Italy's La Stampa was a little kinder to Jones, highlighting the threat he posed going forward, saying: "The Nerazzurri put in a strong first-half performance, coming close to scoring several times - through Jones and [Andy] Diouf - but were punished by two individual errors. A misunderstanding between Jones and Bisseck led to Mbappe's goal in the 14th minute."
Meanwhile, Spanish media cut Alexander-Arnold little slack, even though he was playing out of position. Radio Marca said: "The night was already off to a bad start because of that forced experiment, prompted by the yellow cards, of placing Trent Alexander-Arnold in a position where he contributed almost nothing. They thanked him and took a souvenir photo because he's unlikely to play as a midfielder again."
Meanwhile, the Managing Madrid website gave him a 5/10 rating and said: "Being deployed in midfield wasn’t his decision, and the role did him few favours. Nevertheless, he looked lost defensively and had little influence in possession."
Former Real Madrid midfielder Rafael van der Vaart also took a swipe at Alexander-Arnold, saying he "does not enjoy watching" him. Speaking on Ziggo Sport while assessing a passage of play: "He's standing in front of the defence, which isn't his position.
Trent Alexander-Arnold
Trent Alexander-Arnold came in for scathing criticism(Image: Europa Press via Getty Images)
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"It looks like he's not fit or is suffering from something. Normally, these balls would be a piece of cake for him. I find him slow and making poor decisions on the ball. Just look at how he's shuffling along at the back here. It looks like he has a thumbtack in his shoe. He's limping a bit, every ball goes wrong.
"I think he's playing very poorly. I would substitute him. When they started cheering for a goal, it looked like he was tired. Alexander-Arnold really needed to catch his breath."
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