Arne Slot caught in ‘awkward’ Liverpool moment after Trent Alexander-Arnold jibe
Trent Alexander-Arnold may have played his last game for Liverpool.
The right-back has now confirmed that he will be leaving Anfield at the end of the current campaign, upon the expiry of his contract.
Alexander-Arnold is reportedly set to join Real Madrid in the summer and the move has left a bitter taste in the mouth of some supporters.
Arne Slot has been coy about his true feelings on the situation, but is expected to give Conor Bradley more minutes between now and the end of the season to get him ready for next term.
Slot fails to land with Alexander-Arnold joke
Given Liverpool came into this season with three core players out of contract at the end of the term, holding on to two of them is pretty good going.
Furthermore, most probably would have argued that Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk were the most important players of the three.
Nevertheless, given that he is a Liverpool boy, plenty of supporters are hurt by the right-back’s decision to leave at the time that he is, with the Reds unable to cash in.
Slot has been asked about the situation plenty of times since the announcement and, in his latest pre-match press conference, the boss was asked about the possibility of turning to free transfers to bring players in over the summer.
The Dutchman replied by saying: “Could be a trend [sounding like Trent].
“Funny word, by the way.”
As no one laughed, the boss turned to the side and asked: “Do you understand it? Trent?
“They’re not laughing so it’s probably not funny.”
Liverpool need to look forward
The mood towards Alexander-Arnold in the final weeks of the season is likely to be very mixed and Slot’s joke was an awkward moment.
It’s understandable that the right-back wants to go and experience something new, but similarly, the nature of his exit was bound to upset some supporters.
| Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| 31 | 3 | 6 |
Regardless of how supporters and staff at Anfield feel, the key now is to start planning for the future and Slot will be eager to add to his squad.
The pressure is already on the Merseyside outfit to be at the very top once more next season, with Arsenal and Manchester City likely to strengthen their sides too.
Slot, however, will be keen to show that his side was no fluke this term.
He will just have to hope his transfer business goes down better than his jokes.