Liverpool fans have given an emphatic response on how they would like to see Trent Alexander-Arnold leave the club.
The Liverpool defender confirmed on Monday that he will end his 20-year association with his boyhood club at the end of the season. “This is easily the hardest decision I’ve ever made in my life,” Alexander-Arnold said in a video posted on social media.
“This club has been my whole life – my whole world – for 20 years. From the academy right through until now, the support and love I have felt from everyone inside and outside of the club will stay with me forever. I will forever be in debt to you all,” he added, while he called for fans to try and forgive him for his unpopular decision.
What Alexander-Arnold didn’t mention was his next destination. It’s expected to be Real Madrid, with the Los Blancos managing to attract another high-profile free signing at the end of their contract.
However, there is one issue with Alexander-Arnold’s contractual situation. The England international is officially a Liverpool player until 30 June, although his final match falls on 25 May.
Real is involved in the Club World Cup next month, with its first game coming on 18 June, 13 days before Alexander-Arnold’s contract expires. Should the Spanish side want its imminent arrival to be involved, it must pay Liverpool a transfer fee.
Reports have indicated that there has already been some dialogue between the clubs, with Real willing to part with around €1million ($1.3M/£0.85M) for the 26-year-old’s contract to be terminated early.
(Image: Getty Images)
Liverpool, of course, does not have to engage with Real or accept its demands. However, supporters have called for the Reds to act graciously and allow Alexander-Arnold to leave early.
In a vote put to Liverpool.com readers, 592 (76 percent) said the club should let him depart, while 182 (24 percent) responded to say Liverpool should make the right-back see out his contract.
Real faces Al-Hilal, Pachua and RB Salzburg in the group stage of the expanded tournament this summer. Even if Liverpool denies the club’s request, Alexander-Arnold could be available for the knockout rounds.
The Reds are not competing in the 32-team tournament, with Manchester City and Chelsea to sole Premier League representatives.
(Image: Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
Meanwhile, former Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has claimed Real most probably reached out to Alexander-Arnold years ago to begin discussing a possible transfer.
“I believe it shows a new trend in the game that there is no transfer [fee], for the big big players; they go all at the end of their contract because the wages are so high,” Wenger said on beIN SPORTS.
“If you want to buy [fellow pundit] Marcel [Desailly] now, you have to pay him so much money that you can’t afford the transfer fee anymore, so what do they do?
“They say two years before the end of a contract: ‘We want to buy you, we’ll give you these wages, and we will try to make an offer. If it doesn’t work, we will come back next year and if it doesn’t work we’ll take you for free’. It’s what they did with [Kylian] Mbappe. Real Madrid approached Alexander-Arnold a long, long time ago.”
