The question on the lips of every Liverpool supporter, as his contract ticks down day by day, is how on earth do the Premier League leaders find a full-back with the same outrageous quality as Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Now, bringing in an upgrade from a defensive point of view, well, that would not be too hard a task.
But when it comes to finding someone who can ping a crossfield ball as effortlessly as Trent Alexander-Arnold can, who can whip a free-kick into the top corner, pick out a man in a crowded penalty area, and almost run the game from right-back, suddenly the task facing Arne Slot, Richard Hughes and co takes on a much more daunting feel.
Alexander-Arnold is expected to join Real Madrid on a free transfer once his contract expires in July.
Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher is backing Conor Bradley to step into Trent’s shoes. But while the Northern Ireland international is certainly not short of potential – Bradley outshone Kylian Mbappe in a Champions League meeting with Real Madrid not so long ago – expecting a 21-year-old to emulate arguably the finest full-back in the game is perhaps a dangerous game.
Yet, the identity of Liverpool’s reported targets suggest that they plan to take Carragher’s advice.
Roger Fernandes shows why Liverpool like him in Braga clash
Sign a young, up-and-coming right-back for somewhere in the region of £25 million. A player to come in and compete with Bradley, rather than a more high-profile acquisition who would risk stunting the academy graduate’s development.
The agents of Liverpool-linked Wesley Franca arrived in England for talks late this week. The ‘bullet-fast’ Franca is valued by Flamengo at £25 million.
Givairo Read has been tipped to join Arne Slot at Anfield, a year after the Liverpool boss gave the 19-year-old his debut, but the ink is still drying on a new Feyenoord contract.
The stellar display produced by Roger Fernandes during Braga’s 1-1 draw with Famalicao on Friday night, meanwhile, is unlikely to go unnoticed amongst the talent-scouts on Merseyside.
TBR Football reported in March that Liverpool joined Manchester City in scouting Roger Fernandes. Newcastle, West Ham, Manchester United, Napoli, Atalanta and the Portuguese power duo of Benfica and Porto have also watched Fernandes over the last year or so.
It’s easy to see why.
Described by Total Football Analysis as an ‘electric, pacey’ player, Fernandes is an ‘explosive one-v-one specialist [who] can excel on both flanks, showcasing top-tier pace and agility. He is a player with great positioning, dribbling ability, and can play progressive passes.’
Now, Roger Fernandes, who has a £34 million release clause in his contract, tends to play as a right-sided attacker in Braga’s 4-2-3-1 system.
But given that Slot likes to play with a dynamic full-back charging beyond his inverted wingers, the right-back position held in a vice-like grip by Alexander-Arnold over the last half-century may suit him like a glove.
Roger Fernandes could adapt to Trent Alexander-Arnold’s right-back role
Making his return from a near-two month injury lay-off against Famalicao – Fernandes only needed 19 minutes to remind the Braga supporters of his importance. The Guinea Bissau-born 19-year-old charged down the right-hand side, latching onto the sort of chipped pass with which Alexis Mac Allister excels, and drilled the ball across the face.
Only Roger Pinheiro deflecting it into his own net denied Fernandes a seventh assist – and a 13th goal contribution – of an impressive breakout campaign.
A genuinely two-footed player, Fernandes had already come close moments earlier with a sweet, curling shot with his left.
“The introduction of the young Portuguese-Guinean winger completely changed Braga’s attacking game,” A Bola write, labelling Fernandes the Man of the Match despite him only playing the final 45 minutes. “Constant runs down the flanks and, from one of them, the equaliser came.
“[Fernandes displayed] a speed that had practically been absent in the first-half.”
Speaking at full-time, Braga boss Carlos Carvalhal explained the importance of Fernandes to his system. The Primeira Liga outfit, like Liverpool, like to draw their wingers in-field, closer to the goal, with the full-back expects to provide width and no shortage of attacking threat.
That is where Roger Fernandes truly excels.
“Braga is a team that places its wingers a bit inside and stretches the game a lot,” explains Carvalhal, the former Swansea City and Sheffield Wednesday day.
“Roger is very good at attacking and, when he receives the ball at his feet, he can go forward and create one-on-one situations which are difficult to stop.”
Talking of ‘difficult to stop’, unfortunately Braga, so too is the speculation surrounding Roger Fernandes’ future.
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