Liverpool head coach Arne Slot has given an honest assessment of Trent Alexander-Arnold’s defending, hinting at laziness being a part of his game.
Alexander-Arnold is leaving the Reds this summer, much to the chagrin of many supporters, who can’t understand why he is leaving the Premier League champions for Real Madrid.
The 26-year-old has been a great player for Liverpool, but his defensive work has often been the one area of his game that has been criticised.
Speaking in his pre-Crystal Palace press conference on Friday [via This Is Anfield], Slot didn’t hold back on his comments on Alexander-Arnold, not exactly showering him solely with praise, in terms of his defending when he first arrived:
“I think Mo has said already a few things about why he was in my office in pre-season and there were similar reasons why Trent was in my office in the beginning of the season!” Slot said.
“Maybe he said it himself, he’s going to leave either way so why not tell. Maybe it’s already a first gift I can give Xabi Alonso. I wasn’t completely happy with every single minute how he was on the training ground. In my opinion in certain moments he could do a bit more, to say it mildly, and that’s what we talked about.
“Combined with that I said to him: ‘You are a much better defender than everybody tells you, unfortunately you don’t show it all the time, that’s why people sometimes say you are not’.
“If he is just at it and focused and concentrated, there are not many players that can go around him, because he’s fast, he’s agile, he has great mentality. But it’s about showing that every single game, because in this world we are judged not only on the 34 games we do well, we are mainly judged on the four games we don’t do so well. These things we spoke about in pre-season.”
Fans may enjoy Slot’s comments on Trent
Alexander-Arnold has made himself unpopular with many Liverpool fans because of leaving, with many feeling it tarnishes his legacy or even ruins it.
For that reason, those who have little time for him now may enjoy seeing Slot stick the boot in somewhat, even though he also praises the right-back at the same time.
There have been times when Alexander-Arnold simply hasn’t worked hard enough off the ball, not least at home to Manchester United earlier this season, which hasn’t been acceptable.
Madrid won’t accept it if he turns up as a flash player who doesn’t think he needs to show too much application off the ball, and for his sake, he needs to take Slot’s comments on board.
Alexander-Arnold is a wonderful footballer – Gary Neville has been called “world-class” – but he risks not reaching his potential if his work ethic continues to be hit-and-miss.