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After leaving Liverpool to sign for Real Madrid in the summer, Trent Alexander-Arnold will return to Anfield for the first time this week — and he probably shouldn't expect a warm reception.
In the end, Alexander-Arnold didn't leave as a free agent because Real Madrid wanted to sign him ahead of the Club World Cup. But the former Liverpool number 66 still opted to depart his boyhood club in what was a controversial decision.
His time in Spain so far has been mixed, largely thanks to an injury, and he spent the last two La Liga games on the bench. However, Alexander-Arnold is looking forward to Tuesday's clash.
The 27-year-old was full of praise for Liverpool and his former coach, Arne Slot, too. Alexander-Arnold won the Premier League title under the Dutchman last season.
"As a player, you can sense when you’re working with a top manager, and I was fortunate enough to only work with top managers, in my opinion," he told Amazon Prime.
"You know we (Xabi Alonso and Alexander-Arnold) both came to the club at the same time, and it’s a privilege to work with him and his staff. And it’s been nothing but a dream come true for me."
As well as speaking about Slot and Jurgen Klopp, Alexander-Arnold also praised current boss Alonso.
"I am able to remember how Xabi played and what a player he was," he said. "I said to him in the first conversation that we had, that watching him and Steven Gerrard when I was growing up, made me realize that passing was an art.
"When they passed the ball, it sounded different. You can hear a good pass.
"It is the sound when the ball strikes the ball. It sounds differently. It is hard to describe. If you know, you know.
"He was an idol of mine. He was someone I looked up to and I practiced a lot of the passing he would do.
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"Even now in training, he shows off his passing. He could still play! The way he sees the game is in a pure form."
Liverpool.com says: Alexander-Arnold will know what to expect when he comes to Anfield. Fede Valverde could start at right-back but if he comes onto the field, the intensity from the stands will go up a notch.
Alonso might be wise to leave him out of the starting XI as a result. Anything that increases the noise level around Anfield even beyond the norm for a Champions League night would make the visiting team's life even harder.
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