Kyle Walker has claimed Trent Alexander-Arnold will have endured “sleepless nights” agonizing over his Liverpool future, but said fans should “wish him all the best” at Real Madrid.
Alexander-Arnold confirmed his decision to leave Liverpool last week, with the defender set to depart at the end of the season. The 26-year-old has not yet confirmed which club he will join, but even Arne Slot acknowledged that everyone “knows where he’s going”.
The Liverpool right-back was booed by the Anfield crowd on Sunday as he came on in the 67th minute of the Reds’ 2-2 draw against Arsenal, a reaction which has proved to be a divisive topic among fans.
Jamie Carragher and Steve Nicol were among the former Liverpool players who said jeering one of their own players wasn’t the correct response from supporters, while Slot, Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson avoided criticizing fans.
Alexander-Arnold’s situation is one Walker can somewhat relate to. A stalwart right-back at one of the Premier League’s top clubs for the guts of a decade, the 34-year-old opted to swap the comfortable surroundings of Manchester City to join a major European superpower in January.
His move to AC Milan is only on loan, and Walker’s affinity to City doesn’t cut as deep as Alexander-Arnold’s to Liverpool, but the Sheffield-born defender offered his perspective on the situation.
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“He [Alexander-Arnold] would have had very long, sleepless nights on what he had to do for his career,” Walker said on the Kyle Walker Podcast.
“The servant he has been for the club, for the trophies he has won, the player he has become, me personally, you have to say thank you and wish him all the best on his next chapter.
“When Real Madrid come knocking at the door, there are not many people who would turn that down.
“For Trent, it would have been a very tough decision because I know the love that he has for not just the club but the city.
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“Maybe he feels he has achieved what he wants to achieve at his boyhood club, he has won every trophy you can do and he wants a new test and chapter.
“You have to wish him all the best and hopefully, he goes and produces what he has produced at Real Madrid.
“There is going to be pressure to sign for this team. It’s not just about playing football, it’s about the whole package on and off the field and I’m sure with his character as I know him from being in the international squad, he can do that.
“He has got his good mate Jude [Bellingham] there, who will guide him in the right way, and I’d love to see a Scouser with a Spanish accent.”
Walker is set to return to City this summer, but is expected to depart the club permanently following a disappointing first half of the season at the Etihad.
