Liverpool rebuffed an approach from Real Madrid for Trent Alexander-Arnold in January. The matter will be taken out of its hands at the end of the defender’s contract this summer, but a Premier League rule change could yet prove significant if La Liga follows suit.
Whether Liverpool retained hope of convincing Alexander-Arnold to stay, or simply calculated that his performances until the summer would be more valuable to Arne Slot than any sum Real Madrid might have paid, only Richard Hughes and a handful of others will know. But the upshot is that he will now leave his boyhood club on a free transfer.
However, that would mean Alexander-Arnold missing out on the chance to play for Real Madrid at the Club World Cup, which takes place while he is still under contract at Anfield. While Liverpool won’t be shedding any tears about that, Los Blancos might yet be given the opportunity to push for an early transfer.
The Premier League has approved a new transfer window, primarily for the benefit of Club World Cup teams. There will be an opportunity to conduct business earlier in the summer, so that new signings can be brought in ahead of the tournament.
Liverpool is not participating, so it is Chelsea and Man City that are set to benefit. But if La Liga follows the Premier League’s example, Real Madrid will have a second chance to convince the Reds to part with Alexander-Arnold a little early.
This time around, Liverpool would have no real reason to hang on to him, except maybe spite. And that’s unlikely to be a driving motivator for FSG, who could save around a month of wages, and net a nominal transfer fee.
But while Premier League clubs can now buy ahead of the Club World Cup, being able to sell to foreign clubs is dependent on foreign transfer windows opening. So the ball is firmly in La Liga’s court.
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Unsurprisingly, FIFA is keen for leagues and clubs to find solutions that allow marquee transfers to happen ahead of its revamped, big-money tournament. It will certainly approve of the Premier League’s new measures.
And so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see something similar from La Liga. Real Madrid is said to be very eager to involve Alexander-Arnold in the Club World Cup, so it may also be lobbying the league for an equivalent transfer market tweak.
However, as things stand, any measure allowing Alexander-Arnold to get out of his Liverpool contract early in order to participate in the Club World Cup would require special ad-hoc permission from La Liga. The rules in their current form simply do not allow him to join until the transfer window opens.
If La Liga does find a way to make it happen, as seems likely, then Liverpool will take a degree of solace in at least recouping a tiny fraction of Alexander-Arnold’s value. It won’t change the fact that losing him for almost nothing is more or less unforgivable — but if Slot can see out the Premier League title, the decision not to capitulate to Real Madrid in January will at least be somewhat vindicated.
