Liverpool: Alexander-Arnold to Real Madrid report ‘load of rubbish’ despite ‘increasingly likely’ transfer

Liverpool hero John Aldridge says the Spanish publication that recently claimed Trent Alexander-Arnold wants to join Real Madrid “writes a load of rubbish”.

Alexander-Arnold is allowed to negotiate a pre-contract with foreign clubs from Wednesday as his contract expires next summer.

Real Madrid are reportedly hot on the heels of the England defender and want to continue their recent record of landing world-class players on free transfers.

They landed France captain Kylian Mbappe following the expiry of his Paris Saint-Germain contract in the summer, two years after signing Antonio Rudiger and three years after signing David Alaba on free transfers.

Alexander-Arnold is arguably the best right-back in the world and would be the perfect replacement for Dani Carvajal but Liverpool are obviously eager to agree a new contract.

Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk are also out of contract at the end of the season, though the Reds’ extension negotiations are far more advanced with them than they are with the England international.

A recent report from Spanish newspaper Marca claimed that Alexander-Arnold has informed his current employers that he plans to leave for Madrid at the end of the season.

However, this publication “writes a load of rubbish”.

That is according to former Liverpool striker Aldridge, who has said in his Liverpool Echo column that newspapers in Spain ‘have to make stories up’ to create headlines and is not reading into the recent bombshell report.

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“Trent Alexander-Arnold’s goal celebration was telling against West Ham,” Aldridge said. “Do your talking on the pitch and carry on. Only he and his agent knows what options he’s got and what he wants to do.

“But I played in Spain for two seasons. Marca writes a load of rubbish. Every day, it’s a football paper that has to make stories up. And AS. There might be other ones now too since I played there.

“They’ve got to make stories, they’ve got to get stories. I don’t know whether they have made this one up about Trent deciding to go to Real Madrid, but it wouldn’t surprise me.

“They are just surmising because they have to make headlines every single day from somewhere. I think they are taking a punt and having a guess.

“Having said that, the longer it goes on, then it does look increasingly more likely that he will go to Real Madrid anyway.

“But as long as he keeps on creating, scoring goals, playing well and helps us win the league and trophies this season, that’s all we can expect. Then see what happens in the summer.”

Alexander-Arnold is keeping his cards close to his chest, just as he has done with every contract he has signed at his boyhood club.

“I have been at the club 20 years now and I have signed four or five contract extensions… and none of those have been played out in public. This one won’t be either,” the 26-year-old said earlier this month.

Reds head coach Arne Slot also recently said: “They (Trent, Van Dijk and Salah) are in constant talks with the club and let’s wait and see what happens.

“As long as they keep performing like this, the manager, or head coach I have to say, is happy with them.”

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