'Trent Alexander-Arnold will love it at Real Madrid, I think it's highly likely he will leave Liverpool'
Gary Lineker has encouraged Trent Alexander-Arnold to take the opportunity to join Real Madrid.
The January transfer window means clubs can dive into the market and sign exciting new players to aid the second half of their seasons. Liverpool have been linked with some potential targets for the winter but the main talking point remains on those who are approaching the end of their contracts.
Positive reports have emerged on Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk, including Melissa Reddy reporting that the duo ‘want to stay’ at Anfield and have ‘no intention’ of entertaining pre-contract discussions in January. However, the situation with Trent Alexander-Arnold is a little more uncertain.
Fans and the media had a field day picking apart the meaning behind the right-back’s cryptic celebration against West Ham. Alexander-Arnold scored his first goal of the season, firing home from long-range and then putting his hand to his ear, seemingly mimic the chatter that has been surrounding him.
Many believe this could be in reference to the rumours linking him to an Anfield exit in 2025, which have been rife since the summer. Real Madrid have been heavily linked with Alexander-Arnold for some time now and his friendship with Jude Bellingham has also been fanning the flames.
David Ornstein provided an update on the situation ahead of January 1st, telling NBC that ‘nothing is decided yet’ regarding the defender’s future.
“All options remain open and that’s largely because his camp have not been able to hold any formal negotiations [with Real Madrid] yet. They cannot do that until January 1, but that is very soon. We don’t know whether or not Real Madrid will make an offer to sign him permanently.
“What we do know is Real Madrid want to sign him — they are extremely keen. It presents him with a massive decision to make. In the month of January, we should see some movement — a resolution of sorts because he’ll want to get this sorted sooner rather than later.”
With things still very much up in the air, it’s a nail-biting period for Liverpool fans. Gary Lineker has also weighed in on this eye-popping situation and has actually encouraged Alexander-Arnold to swap Anfield for the Bernabéu.
Speaking on the Rest is Football podcast, the presenter offered his advice and referenced his own blockbuster move to Barcelona from Everton.
“Liverpool is an incredible football club, but a fresh challenge, playing abroad, I did it myself. Playing for Real Madrid or Barcelona is truly special. However strong and powerful and rich the Premier League is, the world’s greats still go to Barcelona and Real Madrid,” Lineker said.
“The only exception in recent times is [Erling] Haaland. That aside, they go there. [Alexander-Arnold] will love it there. It will be amazing. They’ll worship and appreciate his passing range. He is in the prime of his career.
“I wouldn’t begrudge him. It seems to make a lot of sense to me. Free transfer is how Real Madrid have done things recently. He is really close to Jude Bellingham and would fit in there beautifully. He would be a massive success.
“They wouldn’t focus on his defending critically as we do here… overly, in my opinion. It’s a great fit and would be a huge loss for Liverpool, but they have [Conor Bradley] coming through who has done really well. I think it is highly likely that will happen, although I have no inside information whatsoever.”