8 hours ago
37
Liverpool has been told that Trent Alexander-Arnold could return to Anfield and "inflict even more misery" on his former club next week.
Alexander-Arnold will be back on Merseyside in a few days' time as Real Madrid faces the Reds in the Champions League. Liverpool has a league game to think about before then, with Unai Emery's in-form Aston Villa visiting Anfield this weekend.
Considering the contrasting form of both teams, Villa will arrive on Merseyside full of confidence, and it doesn't get any easier for Liverpool after that game, with games against Madrid and Manchester City to come before the international break.
Arne Slot rested plenty of players as Liverpool was knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Crystal Palace, and former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock said that "only time will tell" whether that was the right decision.
"If they beat Aston Villa and Real Madrid, and they start to turn a corner, then yes [it will prove to be the right decision to rest players]," Warnock said.
"If it isn't and things continue, then Liverpool fans will get disgruntled. Managers don't make changes for no reason. But when you need a victory, this was the ideal time to get it.
"Villa will be a tough game, as they’ve won four on the bounce in the Premier League, so Liverpool could easily lose that as well.
"That means Real Madrid and Trent Alexander-Arnold rocking up to Anfield and inflicting even more misery on Liverpool."
Alexander-Arnold joined Madrid in June, but it's fair to say the move hasn't gone to plan so far.
The 27-year-old has started just twice for his new club.
That is partly down to a hamstring injury, but it is also because Dani Carvajal still seems to be ahead of the former Liverpool full-back in the pecking order.
Alexander-Arnold was an unused substitute in El Clasico over the weekend, with Xabi Alonso starting Federico Valverde at right-back against Barcelona, and turning to Carvajal ahead of Alexander-Arnold as a second-half substitute.
Alonso will be without Carvajal until 2026 now, though, after the Spaniard was diagnosed with a knee issue, handing Alexander-Arnold the opportunity to nail down the position in the coming weeks.
A Madrid statement issued earlier this week said: "Following tests carried out on our captain Dani Carvajal by Real Madrid's medical services, he has been diagnosed with a loose body in his right knee. Carvajal will undergo arthroscopic surgery."
English (US) ·