Trent Alexander-Arnold’s potential Real Madrid move comes with a sacrifice with La Liga rules meaning he’d have to give up the iconic No. 66 shirt he wears at Liverpool
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Trent Alexander-Arnold looks set to sign for Real Madrid from Liverpool
Trent Alexander-Arnold looks set to sign for Real Madrid from Liverpool
(Image: Getty Images)
Trent Alexander-Arnold will have to change his shirt number if he is to make the move to Real Madrid this summer.
The 26-year-old Liverpool-born defender looks closer than ever to making a move to La Liga with European giants Real Madrid. Reports claimed on Tuesday morning that Alexander-Arnold was not far from finalising a pre-contract agreement with the Spanish club.
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As the full-back is in the final six months of his contract, it allows him to hold discussions with foreign teams. Madrid have been the dominant club who are preparing a summer move for Alexander-Arnold.
However, a move to Spain would mean the Liverpool star would have to lose something very precious to him. La Liga does not allow shirt numbers above the number 25 as this relates to the maximum squad size registered for the Spanish league.
The only players who are allowed to wear shirt numbers above 25 are youth players because they are not registered in the same way. This means that Alexander-Arnold will not be able to take his iconic shirt number 66 with him if he makes a move to Madrid.
There is bound to be a sense of sadness from the 26-year-old as it was a number he had received in the academy which he joined at six-years-old. It was Lee Radcliffe, the Liverpool's kit operations manager, who had given the England international his celebrated number.
Trent would lose his iconic shirt number if he moves to Real Madrid
Trent would lose his iconic shirt number if he moves to Real Madrid
(Image: MI News/NurPhoto)
"When we get any young lads that come down from the Academy, we always deliberately try to give them a high-ish number," Radcliffe told Liverpoolfc.com in 2020.
"We don't like to give them a low number in case they sort of think they've made it straight away, if you know what I mean. You pick it out because it's a free number and it's around that sort of number you think, 'We'll give that out because he's only just come down'.
"When you see him now lifting trophies and celebrating with No.66 on the back, it's a weird feeling and I can't really describe it. It's weird to see such a high number and for someone to be happy with it!
"Someone like Trent has just been happy to be around the first team and obviously doesn't realise how good he is. He doesn't really ask for anything, to be honest.
"I think he's that laidback that he's obviously been given the number and thought, 'Yeah, that'll do me. I'll keep that', and not realised how iconic it's become over the years."
Speaking to TNT Sports about Alexander-Arnold in January, Reds head coach Arne Slot said: "Trent is the best player in the world when he is down the line. His crosses are incredible.
"He is good centrally - we saw this with the England team - but he’s special on the side."
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He added: "We have spoken a lot to him about consistency. Because he’s been quite long with this club, he sometimes trains or has played games like, ‘Ah, it’s another one from 200 that I’ve already played or all these sessions I’ve already had’.
"This is where we’ve worked on, and I think we can see the progression he has made."