Former Liverpool star Danny Murphy has pinpointed the blame for Trent Alexander-Arnold’s potential departure squarely on the shoulders of the club’s owners.
Alexander-Arnold’s contract at Anfield is up at the end of the season and Real Madrid has made no secret of its admiration for the defender. A bid was rejected by Liverpool in January but Alexander-Arnold has been free to talk to the La Liga giants since then.
And it now seems inevitable that this will be his final season with Liverpool, with Real now working towards reaching an agreement with the 26-year-old for him to arrive on a free transfer this summer.
Murphy, however, asserts that Fenway Sports Group, Liverpool’s proprietors, are the ones who should be assuming responsibility. It baffles him that since Alexander-Arnold’s last contract signing in 2021, no extension has been tabled to protect the club’s financial interests in the highly-regarded defender.
“Trent Alexander-Arnold is not at fault for leaving Liverpool on a free transfer; that is the fault of the club,” Murphy stated to Poker Firma.
“I can understand the disappointment from the fans for not getting money from the move, but you must be realistic. Trent could have been sold when he didn’t sign a new deal last year or the year before that.
“It’s been known that if you have a player that is wanted or appreciated by other clubs, you look to secure them to a new deal when they have at least two years left on their contract.
(Image: Alex Livesey – Danehouse/Getty Images)
“If the player doesn’t want to sign a new deal, they’ll likely be sold; the club must protect the asset. That’s not always the case, but the club has allowed not just this situation, but multiple situations where it could lose its best players and most valuable assets for nothing.
“I can understand the frustration from the fans that one of their own is leaving, he’s given everything to the club and he has won everything with Liverpool. You can’t begrudge him the opportunity to go and do that at another club.”
Both Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk also find themselves in the last stretch of their contracts at Liverpool, with no signs of progress on renewals being reported. Though there’s still a chance the duo might don the red kit beyond this uncertainty, it seems like the final chapter is being written for Alexander-Arnold in a Liverpool shirt.
The defender is currently out injured and is unlikely to be fit for next week’s Merseyside derby with Everton and it remains unclear what sort of reception he will receive from the Anfield crowd.
