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Trent Alexander-Arnold announces Liverpool departure
Trent Alexander-Arnold has announced he will leave Liverpool when his contract expires this summer.
The player’s future had been the subject of much speculation for the better part of a year, with talks between him and the club said to have started during Jurgen Klopp’s final season at the helm.
Talks continued when Arne Slot joined the club this summer and were said to be positive, but the player communicated his desire to embark on a new challenge.
Alexander-Arnold stopped short of confirming his next move, but the 26-year-old is widely expected to join Real Madrid in what has become one of football’s worst-kept secrets.
Speaking to Liverpool’s official website, Alexander Arnold said: “I think first and foremost, I want to say it’s not an easy decision and there’s a lot of thought and feeling that has gone into it. I’ve been here 20 years now, loved every single minute of it, achieved all my dreams, achieved everything I’ve ever wanted to here.”
“Giving everything day in, day out for 20 years, I’ve got to a point now where I feel like I need a new change, a new challenge for me as a player and as a person. And I think now is the right time for me to do that.”
Alexander-Arnold seeking new challenge
He continued, addressing the Liverpool supporters directly.
“There’s a lot I would like to say. The main thing is a massive thank you. You guys have been there from the start with me, you guys have supported me, been there.”
“I’ve felt the support, the love, everything that you guys have done has never been unnoticed by me, I’ve loved every single minute of it. I hope they have felt that has been reciprocated and that I’ve given everything I could to the club.
“I’m just hoping that we’re able to carry on winning games, the noise [around my decision] doesn’t take away from the fact of what we’ve achieved this season.”
“It has been an amazing season. It has been amazing to be part of it and I just hope that everyone is able to maybe not dwell on this news for too long and be able to celebrate what the rest of the lads have done.”
Alexander-Arnold will depart the club as one of Liverpool’s most decorated servants. He’s lifted eight major trophies, with this year’s Premier League title becoming his second at the club.
A youth academy product, Alexander-Arnold progressed through the ranks and made his senior debut in 2016. He has gone on to make 352 appearances so far, scoring 23 goals and supplying an astonishing 86 assists in all competitions.
Sixty four of those assists came in the Premier League, a record for any defender in the competition’s history.
