Real Madrid have been working on the signing of Trent Alexander-Arnold for several months, and their belief is that a deal is almost done. The English right-back sees his Liverpool contract expire at the end of the season, and right now, it seems likely that he will be heading to the Santiago Bernabeu in the summer as a free agent.
There is little doubt that Alexander-Arnold would be a perfect signing for Real Madrid, given that they are in need of a new right-back to replace the aging duo of Dani Carvajal, who is currently out with an ACL injury, and Lucas Vazquez. However, the club were given a firm remainder of the deficiencies that the 26-year-old has during Sunday’s match between Manchester City and Liverpool, which the visitor’s won 2-0.
Alexander-Arnold had a very difficult afternoon at the Etihad Stadium up against Man City’s Jeremy Doku. As per Relevo, he was dribbled past 11 times across the 90 minutes, and this is a record for the Premier League this season.
The report states that this performance can serve as a “warning” to Real Madrid, and it amplifies what they must work on with Alexander-Arnold if he does make the move from Liverpool at the end of the season.
Real Madrid are fortunate in the sense that they will still have Carvajal for at least a couple of years from this summer, so he can act as a mentor for Alexander-Arnold. He could even be trusted ahead of the Englishman in big matches against tricky wingers like Doku, as could Federico Valverde, who has impressed in the position in recent weeks.
Alexander-Arnold is still relatively young, and his defensive ability can certainly be improved upon if he joins Real Madrid this summer. If he does, he would have the facilities to make the necessary adjustments and changes, although Liverpool have not given up keeping him.
