'You can see' - James Tarkowski reacts to major news coming out of Liverpool

James Tarkowski has weighed in on the exit of Trent Alexander-Arnold from Liverpool.

The Reds vice-captain has confirmed he will not be signing a new deal at his boyhood club. Alexander-Arnold will depart in June on a free transfer and is expected to join Real Madrid. He will end a 20-year association with Liverpool, having won every major trophy including a second Premier League this season.

Alexander-Arnold’s decision to leave for nothing has left sections of supporters angered and frustrated. The right-back says that he wants a fresh challenge.

Tarkowski, vice-skipper of Liverpool’s fierce rivals Everton. appeared as a guest on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football for Crystal Palace’s 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest. The subject of Alexander-Arnold was raised and Tarkowski says that it is every footballer’s dream to play for Madrid when they are a child.

The centre-back said: “I've not been fortunate enough to play for my boyhood club, win the things he has done and done the things he has done. In my opinion, every young boy's dream would be to play for Real Madrid over anyone else in the world. They are the No.1 club and that's the only pull that has got him.

“Maybe in this situation, he is being judged because he's a local lad, come through the academy and been there so long. I'm sure he is but it's his own career, he's going to make his own decisions and obviously feels he needs to go and experience this adventure at the biggest club in the world. I can see frustration from a Liverpool perspective but can see it from his point as well.”

Alexander-Arnold was silent throughout the season as he contract ticked down. Virgil van Dijk and Mo Salah, who both penned fresh terms last month at Liverpool, did speak about their ongoing situation.

Alexander-Arnold has claimed he didn’t feel it was right to discuss his situation while Liverpool were fighting for the Premier League title. He told the club’s website: “Obviously there’s been a lot of noise around what the decision was going to be and how that was going to look. I know a lot of people will say I should have said sooner, a lot of people will say maybe I waited for the right time. But I felt personally the focus should always be on the pitch, should always be about the football.

“When we were in a title race and trying to push for trophies, it’s about making the right decision for the team and trying not to distract the team and take away from what we’re doing on the pitch. For me, it was always to do it after the season was kind of done; not so much the final game but when there was nothing else really to play for. Now that we’ve won the league and we’ve been able to celebrate it and celebrate such an amazing achievement, I felt like now is the right time to get it off my chest and tell the fans the truth, and now is that time.”