Trent Alexander-Arnold confirms departure from Liverpool aft
Trent Alexander-Arnold confirms departure from Liverpool after 20 years amid Real Madrid link
“After 20 years at Liverpool Football Club, I will be leaving at the end of the season" Trent Alexander-Arnold who joined Liverpool at the age of 6 and has won every major honor with the club
LONDON — Trent Alexander-Arnold sat down, took a deep breath and uttered the words
many Liverpool knew would be coming.
“After 20 years at Liverpool Football Club," he said
into a camera, “I will be leaving at the end of the season.”
Alexander-Arnold didn't mention his next destination when
confirming his imminent departure from Liverpool on his social media accounts
but the England right back is widely expected to move to Real Madrid on a free
transfer.
The locally born Alexander-Arnold, who joined Liverpool
at the age of 6 and has won every major honor with the club, said it was
“easily the hardest decision I've ever made in my life.”
He has announced it barely a week after clinching a
second Premier League title with the Reds, pushing them onto 20 English
top-flight championships — tied for the record with Manchester United.
“This club has been my whole life — my whole world — for
20 years,” the 26-year-old Alexander-Arnold wrote. "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.
“But, I have never known anything else and this decision
is about experiencing a new challenge, taking myself out of my comfort zone and
pushing myself both professionally and personally. I've given my all every
single day I've been at this club, and I hope you feel like I've given back to
you during my time here.”
Fans might feel let downWhile Mohamed Salah and Virgil
van Dijk have recently signed new two-year deals with Liverpool, there was
lingering uncertainty over the future of Alexander-Arnold, who was also out of
contract at the end of this season.
Some fans will be unhappy he has run down his contract
and not allowed Liverpool to get any money for one of its star assets.
“I completely understand that the news will disappoint a
lot of people, will anger people, it will make them upset,” Alexander-Arnold
told Liverpool's official website. "Obviously that went into the decision
as well — it's something you don't want to do, you don't want to ever have
these moments where you feel like you're letting a lot of people down, you're
disappointing a lot of people.
“But I've had to make a decision for me, it's as simple
as that. It's a difficult one, it's one that has played on my mind for a long
time but being able now to get it off my chest will feel like a weight is
lifted.”
Alexander-Arnold said he hasn't spoken publicly about his
future in recent months because he wanted the "to keep my full focus on
the team's best interests, which was securing No. 20.”
“I'm just hoping that we're able to carry on winning
games (and) the noise doesn't take away from the fact of what we've achieved
this season," he said.
His trophies and that assist against
BarcelonaAlexander-Arnold won the Premier League in 2020 and again this year,
as well as the Champions League in 2019, the FA Cup, English League Cup, UEFA
Super Cup and Club World Cup.
Since making his senior debut in October 2016, he has
been key to revolutionizing the role of a full back, with Alexander-Arnold
having been Liverpool's most creative player at times with his marauding runs
down the right and his ability to come infield and pick out passes to the
team's attackers.
Arguably the most famous moment of his Liverpool career
was when his quickly taken corner set up a goal for Divock Origi to complete a
memorable comeback against Barcelona in the Champions League semifinals in
2019.
“From the bottom of my heart, I thank everybody — my
coaches, my managers, my teammates, the staff and our incredible supporters —
for the last 20 years,” Alexander-Arnold wrote.
“I've been blessed enough to live out my dreams here and
I will never, ever take for granted the special moments I've been fortunate
enough to have lived through with you all. My love for this club will never
die.”
Another potential bargain for MadridIf he does go to
Madrid, it would be as a free agent and he'd follow in the footsteps of the
likes of Steve McManaman, Michael Owen and Xabi Alonso in swapping Anfield for
the Santiago Bernabeu.
Alexander-Arnold would be joining England teammate Jude
Bellingham in Madrid as well as Kylian Mbappé, who moved there in June 2024 on
a free transfer after leaving Paris Saint-Germain.
Liverpool said Alexander-Arnold “will depart with our
gratitude and appreciation for his contribution during a sustained period of
success.”
Liverpool manager Arne Slot has Conor Bradley as a
ready-made back-up for Alexander-Arnold, but is likely to go into the transfer
market for another replacement.
