Trent Alexander-Arnold is reportedly seeking to follow the example set by three of his former Liverpool teammates in what may appear to be a strong hint towards him extending his stay at the club.
The 25-year-old’s future has been a hot topic of speculation now that he’s into the final year of his current contract and is a rumoured target for Real Madrid.
However, according to Paul Gorst for the Liverpool Echo, the Reds’ vice-captain isn’t showing any inclination of being tempted away from his boyhood club. If anything, the opposite is true.
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The journalist wrote: “The No.66 has never shied away from his desire to one day captain the club he grew up supporting and has spoken in glowing terms of the increased responsibility he has taken on since being promoted into the leadership group within the playing squad.
“At the age of 25, Alexander-Arnold now sees it as his duty to help bring through the next generation of stars at Anfield in same way the more experienced players like Jordan Henderson, James Milner and Adam Lallana did for him when he broke into senior fringes under Jurgen Klopp eight years ago.”
Trent’s status as a leader at Liverpool was reflected in him being given the vice-captaincy by Klopp last summer after Milner had left, and it appears that the 25-year-old is embracing that added responsibility.
He was fortunate to break into the first team at a time when the Reds had plenty of experienced natural leaders in the squad, such as the trio namechecked by Gorst; and like fellow Scouser Steven Gerrard, he’s come up through the ranks to establish himself as a mainstay at Anfield.
He’s now the 11th-oldest player in Arne Slot’s squad following the summer exits of Adrian, Thiago Alcantara and Joel Matip, and some of those who have more years on him biologically aren’t regular starters.
Where Trent was once the academy hopeful dreaming of making it big at Liverpool, he’s now looking at the likes of Tyler Morton, Stefana Bajcetic, Bobby Clark and Ben Doak hoping to emulate him over the coming years.
With the 25-year-old seemingly determined to be a mentor for that group in the same way that Henderson, Milner and Lallana were for him, it’d suggest that he sees his future at Anfield and will put to rest any lingering fears of a move to Madrid by penning a new long-term deal on Merseyside.
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