Jamie Carragher was critical of one Liverpool player after the 2-2 draw with Manchester United. He felt that Arne Slot should have taken him off earlier in the game.

 

 

Trent Alexander-Arnold is going to have to get used to being the talk of Liverpool one way or another over the next few weeks. Being courted by Real Madrid, there is going to be a new level of scrutiny over his performances.

 

Unfortunately for the Liverpool number 66, his showing against Manchester United was not a good one. Limited in an attacking sense, Alexander-Arnold struggled defensively against the likes of Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot. Indeed, he didn’t win a single tackle or duel all game.

 

Arne Slot stuck up for his player, insisting that the quality of the opponent should be taken into account and hinting that it was simply one of those days for his vice-captain. He was always going to do that, though, and this was not a true reflection of Alexander-Arnold’s ability either in or out of possessionI think [Slot] got that wrong today,” Carragher said when discussing Alexander-Arnold post-match on Sky Sports. “I think he should have taken Trent off earlier. Not at half-time but see how the first 10 or 15 minutes go. But as soon as Man Utd got that first goal, I think Trent should have come off earlier.”

 

 

With Conor Bradley on the bench again after returning from injury, Liverpool did have an option in reserve. But perhaps Slot felt that would have been even more of a talking point had Alexander-Arnold been hooked earlier in the half. As it was, he stayed on until the 86th minute — the same time Harvey Elliott replaced Cody Gakpo