Liverpool drop Alexander-Arnold decision hint with Frimpong transfer approach

Liverpool may have just revealed what position Arne Slot wants Trent Alexander-Arnold to play next season. The 25-year-old has prided himself as one of the best right-backs in the world since bursting onto the scene at Anfield, but he’s recently begun playing in midfield.

In September 2021, Gareth Southgate debuted Alexander-Arnold in the middle of the park during England’s 4-0 win over Andorra in the World Cup qualifiers. While it was just an experiment that only lasted 45 minutes, he played alongside Jude Bellingham as an eight while Jordan Henderson operated as a six.

After the international break, Jurgen Klopp questioned why the Three Lions boss would play Alexander-Arnold out of position. The former Liverpool boss said: “In this game, in a game where England are that dominant for example, or that we are that dominant that Trent could play in midfield, I would rather he was the six than in this case the eight.

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“That is possible but why would you make the best right-back in the world a midfielder? I don’t understand that really. As if the right-back position is not as important as the others. People who say that I struggle to understand how you could think that.”

Klopp had been forced to play Alexander-Arnold in midfield on a few occasions in 2018, but he didn’t revisit the plan – on paper at least – until 2023. The Englishman roamed the middle of the park during Liverpool’s 2-1 win over Bournemouth in the Carabao Cup fourth round before doing the same against West Ham in the quarterfinals.

Across the two games, where Alexander-Arnold featured for no more than an hour, he recorded two assists. Meanwhile, with Southgate spoiled for options at right-back, the Liverpool ace has enjoyed a growing role in midfield.

Speaking to FourFourTwo in April 2024, Alexander-Arnold explained that his move infield has been a natural transition. He said: “Already it’s evolved and been adapted in many ways. I think the first game that worked amazingly was when we played Leeds away in April, right after we played Arsenal.

“We won 6-1 and I think I had the most touches and most passes – I’d like to see all of the data. I thought I dictated the game and that’s when I said, ‘Yeah, this will work, it’s natural.’ I was moving, I was on the ball, I was able to do what I needed and so was everybody else. When you win 6-1, that usually means you’ve done something right.”

Then, earlier last month, the Three Lions boss was quizzed on his decision to play Alexander-Arnold slightly deeper alongside Declan Rice in a double pivot. He said: “Firstly, he is enjoying playing in an England shirt.

“He has had a difficult international career in that because of the strength in depth in the area, we haven’t always been able to give him the amount of football that his talent deserves.

“But we have always been trying to find a way to do that and I think he knows that and he appreciates that so it was lovely to see him score, have that moment and play with that confidence for England.”

Southgate added: “We were very pleased, it is a role he is discovering and he is hungry to learn and has been since I talked to him about playing it a year or so ago and equally what we saw in the last half an hour is also an important option for us as well.

“We are going to have different challenges in this tournament and we are going to have to have different ways of solving problems that teams pose us.”

With Alexander-Arnold beginning to master the midfield role, Slot seems keen to build his squad around the technician – and might mean signing a new right-back. According to German publication SportBild, Liverpool have lodged an enquiry with Bayer Leverkusen regarding a potential deal for Jeremie Frimpong.

The 23-year-old defender played a key role in Xabi Alonso’s side this season, helping the German club win the Bundesliga unbeaten. The report states Frimpong has a €40m (£33.7m) release clause in his contract at the BayArena. SportBild add that the release clause expires on Friday despite his deal running until June 2028.

It’s said that Barcelona have submitted an offer for the Netherlands international, but it was deemed not enough for Bayer Leverkusen to accept. Slot will want to put his own twist on the Reds this summer, so perhaps this could be the start of a new era in itself.