Trent Alexander-Arnold’s Liverpool exit left a rather sour taste in the mouths of fans.
The right-back chose to leave Anfield upon the expiry of his contract and explore pastures new with Real Madrid.
Although fans wouldn’t have been that bothered if he left for a sizeable fee, the fact that he led them on and left for nothing made his exit so much worse.
The right-back was a disaster defensively at times, but there was no denying that he was one of the Reds’ most creative players.
A lot of the Anfield outfit’s attacks started with the Englishman due to his range of passing and his link-up with Mohamed Salah.
Indeed, they do have Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley to fill in the gap left by the defender, but at the moment, things don’t seem to be clicking.
Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong’s form may make Liverpool fans want Trent Alexander-Arnold back
When Frimpong was brought in during the summer, fans were ecstatic about what the Dutchman could bring to their team.
He’s often been used at right-back throughout his career, but when playing for Bayer Leverkusen, Xabi Alonso used him further up the pitch at times.
In fact, Arne Slot actually followed suit and did this himself against Galatasaray, but unfortunately for the Liverpool boss, things didn’t work out as he’d have wanted them to.
This sparked questions about Slot’s decision-making and whether the former Manchester City man was cut out for the Premier League.
Bradley hasn’t been much better either, with the Northern Irishman often letting his emotions get the better of him.
And, although Alexander-Arnold wasn’t the best defender, he did manage to make up for that with the number of assists he earned each season.
Now, without him among their ranks, Liverpool are clearly feeling it as Florian Wirtz, who was brought in to be the Reds’ creative spark, has also been nowhere near his best.
Trent Alexander-Arnold could have helped keep things familiar at Liverpool this season
One of the main problems that Liverpool are facing this season is the teething problems among their first-team squad.
Due to the sheer number of players that were brought in, it’s likely to take months before we see Slot’s men at their very best.
However, this isn’t due to them having a lack of talent or quality; instead, it’s actually down to the harmony among the squad.
Although the core of the Reds’ team has been kept the same, players such as Hugo Ekitike and Alexander Isak have different needs compared to those of Darwin Nunez and Luis Diaz.
All of these things will take time to adjust, but if Alexander-Arnold was kept around, it feels like the transition would have been much smoother.
That is, especially after the last few performances that have been on display at right-back for Liverpool.
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