Trent Alexander-Arnold is set to be fit for Real Madrid‘s trip to Liverpool next month – and therefore is expected to start against his former club at Anfield.
Alexander-Arnold has been sidelined since Real’s 2-1 win over Marseille in the Champions League a month ago, being forced off after five minutes with a hamstring injury.
That led to fears from Madrid that the right-back would not be available to face the Premier League champions on November 4 – made worse by an injury to Dani Carvajal.
But the Times‘ Paul Joyce reports – via sources close to the player himself – that Alexander-Arnold expects to be back in time to face Liverpool.
He is likely to feature towards the end of October with a view to being in starting contention against the Reds, with Xabi Alonso using Federico Valverde at right-back in the meantime.
Alonso could still face a tough call over whether to name Alexander-Arnold in his side to face Liverpool given the added pressure of a return to Merseyside.
The 27-year-old is almost certain of a brutal reception from the home supporters given the nature of his move to Madrid, which saw him run down his contract and routinely avoid questions on his future.
Having served as vice-captain in his final campaign with the club it was rare that Alexander-Arnold would be involved in the public-facing duties of the role.
He has since been replaced by Andy Robertson, with Mohamed Salah, Alisson and Alexis Mac Allister considered part of an informal leadership group within the squad.
Alexander-Arnold’s silence over his contract situation was made worse by a series of mixed messages including his celebrations after goals against West Ham in December, Aston Villa in February and Leicester in April.
His ‘all talk’ gesture during the 5-0 thrashing of West Ham even led Arne Slot to claim: “[That] probably tells you enough, so I don’t think I have to say much more about it.”
The right-back then hung his shirt on the corner flag after scoring the winner against Leicester, before dodging calls to address his situation by saying: “I’ve said all season, I’m not going to speak on my situation.”
Liverpool eventually brokered a deal worth £10 million to sell Alexander-Arnold to Real before the Club World Cup.
Alonso has indicated that his new No. 12 is not yet considered first-choice right-back, with the Real head coach preferring his captain, Carvajal, when fit.
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