Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold was playing much higher up the pitch than expected against Everton today.
Trent was starting in his usual position at right-back during this afternoon’s Merseyside Derby. And as ever, the 24-year-old was doing his usual trick of stepping into the midfield.
This is no longer a surprise to anyone who has watched Liverpool over the past six months. But according to TNT Sports co-commentator Ally McCoist, just how high up the pitch Alexander-Arnold was positioning himself was a bit of a shock.
“Just look at Trent Alexander’s starting position,” mused the pundit.
“It’s almost a no.10 position opposite Diogo Jota, that’s how high up the pitch he is. It’s amazing.
“I knew he’d start higher up the pitch, or get involved higher up the pitch, but not that high.”
With Everton sitting in and looking to hit Liverpool on the counter-attack, there was plenty of space for Trent to step into. As we all know, he’s never afraid to make the most of it.
Trent pulling the strings
These days, we’ve become completely used to seeing Alexander-Arnold dictating things from higher up the pitch.
But at times, you do have to check the number on the back of the shirt during games.
Against Everton, that was no different, as Trent looked to get on the ball as much as possible. And as expected, there was some beautiful passing on display.
The England international wasn’t the only one impressing in that respect, though. All of Dominik Szoboszlai, Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister in particular found their range against the Blues.
You always get the impression that if Liverpool are to break the deadlock in these tight games, then Trent will be the key.
So far, that hasn’t quite happened. Nevertheless, there’s still plenty of time for that to change.
One thing you can be certain of is that whatever the score-line, Alexander-Arnold will keep pushing into these positions.
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