Real Madrid is calling, and Trent Alexander-Arnold looks set to answer as he prepares to follow in the footsteps of some of Liverpool’s biggest stars of the past.
A move to the Bernabeu looks inevitable for the right-back now, with reports coming to a head on Tuesday as various outlets suggested terms had been agreed with the Spanish giant, or at the very least that Real was looking to finalize a deal. Alexander-Arnold is of course set to see his contract expire at the end of the current season, and a free transfer already looks to be in the works.
Long linked with a move to the Bernabeu, Real first stepped up its attempts to sign the right-back right at the end of 2024, with Liverpool rejecting a first bid before the turn of the year, while a second attempt was reportedly considered but never arrived.
Nevertheless, Real looks as though it will get its man, with Alexander-Arnold set to follow in the footsteps of four former Liverpool stars in swapping Anfield for the Bernabeu.
Steve McManaman
A name that has been brought up regularly throughout Alexander-Arnold’s saga, Steve McManaman knows what the Liverpool vice-captain is going through. He too was an assist machine who made his way though the club’s academy before attracting the interest of Real towards the end of his contract.
McManaman signed a pre-contract agreement with the Spanish club in 1999, becoming one of the most high-profile free transfers of all time in the process, before going on to spend four years at the Bernabeu.
(Image: Shaun Botterill /Allsport)
His time in Spain will certainly encourage Alexander-Arnold on the move, with the Bootle-born star going on to win La Liga twice while also being crowned a European champion on two occasions, with McManaman even scoring in the 2000 final against Valencia in his first season with the club.
Although his time at Real rather fizzled out toward the end, with David Beckham’s signing essentially sealing his departure, McManaman is still thought of fondly at the Bernabeu.
Michael Owen
While McManaman’s story might serve as encouragement to Alexander-Arnold, Michael Owen’s should be seen as a warning.
Like McManaman and Alexander-Arnold, Owen came through the ranks at Liverpool before becoming a superstar with the Reds, even going on to win the Ballon d’Or in 2001. That inevitably brought with it plenty of interest from elsewhere, and in 2004, Real came knocking.
Owen’s time with the Reds ended on something of a sour note, with the striker left on the bench by new manager Rafael Benitez for the Champions League qualifier against Graz AK, with cameras spending just as much time on him as they did on the action on the pitch.
(Image: Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images)
The transfer was confirmed soon after, with Owen given the grand welcome reserved for Real’s biggest signings. His time at the Bernabeu did not go according to plan though.
Despite a decent record of 13 goals from 36 league appearances, with 26 of them coming from the start, he struggled to nail down a place in the side, and after just one trophyless season, he was back on English shores as he joined Newcastle United.
He was never the same after leaving Liverpool, with persistent injuries wrecking what was a promising career, and his reputation on Merseyside was well and truly destroyed when he joined Manchester United in 2009.
Alvaro Arbeloa
Something of a forgotten man at Liverpool, Alvaro Arbeloa spent two-and-a-half years at Anfield, making 98 appearances and appearing in the 2007 Champions League final before departing for Real in 2009.
The right-back had been part of the academy at the Bernabeu as a youngster, and would go on to spend seven years in his second spell in the Spanish capital, making 153 league appearances in the process. He was part of the squads that won La Liga in 2012, and the Champions League in 2014 and 2016, albeit he was more of a bit-part player by that point.
Still, Arbeloa is an example for Alexander-Arnold on how to make it as a right-back at Real, although he was very much a different kind of player to the Liverpool vice-captain. How the Bernabeu crowd would take to his more attacking style is still a big question.
Xabi Alonso
While the other three players on this list might have sullied their reputations at Liverpool somewhat, Xabi Alonso holds the distinction of being loved by fans of both the Reds and Real even now.
The former midfielder is perhaps helped by the fact that his place at Anfield was rather undermined by Rafael Benitez’s pursuit of Gareth Barry – a player Liverpool didn’t even end up signing. Despite forming a sensational midfield trio with Steven Gerrard and Javier Mascherano, Alonso would depart for Madrid in 2009, with much of the blame for his exit landing at Benitez’s feet.
Liverpool fans could only watch on as Alonso went on to become a pivotal player in a star-studded Real side that also boasted the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka and Karim Benzema. During his five years in Madrid he won the La Liga title in 2012 and the Champions League in 2014, as well as two Copa del Reys.
Alexander-Arnold will no doubt look at Alonso as an inspiration, with the Spaniard displaying an unbelievable range of passing long before the right-back would make his debut for Liverpool. With reports suggesting that Alonso may even succeed Carlo Aneclotti as manager at the Bernabeu, it might not be too long before the pair are brought together.
An original version of this article was first published on January 8.
