The Debate: Is Trent Alexander-Arnold a Liverpool legend?

Trent Alexander-Arnold will leave Liverpool at the end of the 2024/25 campaign.

The Reds vice-captain is set to see his contract expire at the end of the season and Alexander-Arnold has been strongly linked with a move to Spanish giants Real Madrid.

Alexander-Arnold was front and centre in Liverpool's Premier League title celebrations as Arne Slot's men were crowned champions following a 5-1 dismantling of Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield, which had sparked some optimism that the decorated right-back may remain on Merseyside.

Just over a week later, the Liverpudlian has announced his intentions to leave the club at the end of the season.

But will Alexander-Arnold leave the club as a Liverpool legend?

Members of the bet365 News team debate whether Alexander-Arnold warrants legendary status.

A premeditated move to Real Madrid on a free transfer would strip Trent Alexander-Arnold of legendary status at Liverpool Football Club.

Ellis Statham

A premeditated move to Real Madrid on a free transfer would strip Trent Alexander-Arnold of legendary status at Liverpool Football Club.

Jamie Carragher, undoubtedly a good footballer, more so admired for his ever-present loyalty to the Reds.

Steven Gerrard, supremely talented and one of the greatest midfielders to grace the Premier League, so nearly detested by Liverpool fans for leaving the club, ultimately deciding to stay to cement a legacy that puts him alongside the likes of Kenny Dalglish.

Nor Carragher or Gerrard were fortunate enough to play in Liverpool teams fighting on all fronts on a yearly basis, yet they still remained at the club and will forever be idolised by the fanbase.

By no means is it unacceptable for Alexander-Arnold to leave the Reds. Having revolutionised the right-back role, he is incomparable to other full-backs and it’s clear to see why he is admired by Real Madrid.

With that said, he simply can’t expect to be adored by Liverpool fans for years to come.

Ask Luis Suarez, Fernando Torres, Michael Owen and even Liverpudlian Steve McManaman. All fantastic footballers in their own right, not to be considered in the same bracket as Gerrard or Carragher by Liverpool fans.

“All I ever want is to stay there (Liverpool), hopefully be a legend, hopefully captain the club, win a lot of trophies, go down as a legend and be remembered forever as a Liverpool player,” Alexander-Arnold confessed after winning the Premier League with Liverpool in 2020.

While so many things can change in football, including emotions, it’s hard to see what the turning point was for Trent, and that’s what Liverpool fans will likely find hard to compromise with.

Arne Slot’s Reds have secured the club’s 20th league title. Alexander-Arnold has chalked up his second Premier League success and has the chance to help the club overtake rivals Manchester United’s tally in the coming years. A situation the likes of Carragher and Gerrard could only have dreamt of.

The Liverpudlian’s time at the Reds will be looked back on fondly, but the nature of devoted football fans means he won’t be remembered as a Liverpool legend.

• Liverpool crowned Premier League winners after Tottenham win

It's understandable why Trent Alexander-Arnold's departure would leave a bitter taste, but his Liverpool accomplishments are befitting of legendary status.

Jaquob Crooke

There is always great attachment between a football fan and a local lad fulfilling their lifelong ambition of representing their boyhood club.

Immediately a bond is forged. They’re living your dream.

When the player in question happens to be an integral member of a side that has achieved success domestically and in Europe, the affection only grows stronger.

It’s why Trent Alexander-Arnold’s pending departure to Real Madrid leaves an extremely bitter taste in the mouths of all Liverpool supporters.

But let’s not forget what he’s accomplished in a special nine years with the Reds.

This is a man who’s completed the full set with Liverpool, winning every trophy on offer with successes in the UEFA Champions League, FA Cup, League Cup and the one prize that had eluded several Reds legends, the Premier League.

He’s not just won it once, either. In fact, he’s not just won it; he’s played an instrumental role in Liverpool retrieving their ‘Champions of England’ crown on two occasions.

He’s been a fantastic servant to the club he’s joyously represented since the age of six.

“I’m just a normal lad from Liverpool whose dream has just come true,” Alexander-Arnold once said, his quote inscribed on the brickwork of the Sybil Road mural.

The 26-year-old has achieved his dream and more. Ultimately, no matter how great your allegiance is to someone or something, dreams can alter.

Surely Alexander-Arnold can be forgiven for that?

We’ve seen on countless occasions through the years of how the allure of Real Madrid and their eternal riches can be too difficult to ignore.

When time passes and the wounds heal, Liverpool supporters have the option to reflect proudly.

Legends are made from legendary moments and for Alexander-Arnold there are an abundance from which you can choose from.

What’s to say he won’t return to create more of those memories at Anfield in the future?

This chapter may be closing but the book remains unfinished, and Liverpool fans may regret treating one of their own with such disdain when he has already given so much.

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