Liverpool are in a good place ahead of Arne Slot beginning his reign at the club.
Supporters would obviously liked to have seen Jurgen Klopp stay on and finish his contract at Anfield.
But it’s undeniable that Klopp has left the Liverpool squad in a very good place. One or two adjustments need to made, but there’s some real quality for Slot to work with.
Over his nine years or so in charge, Klopp slowly figured out the players he could not do without. Jamie Carragher named four ‘untouchable’ players the German manager relied upon.
And as Slot takes over at Anfield, it seems likely that he will lean on this same quartet. According to former Liverpool player Danny Murphy, one in particular has something that you simply won’t find anywhere else.
Danny Murphy raves about Trent Alexander-Arnold
The four players that Carragher named as being completely priceless for Klopp were: Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah, Alisson Becker and Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Although there are transfer rumours over all four of those players, it seems most likely that all will form part of Slot’s first Liverpool squad.
Perhaps the most intrigue surrounds what the new head coach plans to do with Alexander-Arnold.
The academy graduate shone once again while playing in midfield for England on Monday. It’s possible that Slot could see him in this role permanently moving forwards.
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And according to Murphy, that might be a good decision. Speaking on TalkSPORT, the pundit raved about Alexander-Arnold’s choice to be fearless with the ball at his feet.
“Trent does something not many players do, he takes really high risks with the ball because he’s not scared of failing,” says Murphy.
“There’s not many players who have a) got the capability and b) the mindset to do it.”
Where will Alexander-Arnold play under Arne Slot?
After putting in a masterclass earlier in the week, there’s a chance that Alexander-Arnold has jumped the queue for England.
If the 25-year-old starts for his country as a midfielder at the Euros, that could be a tipping point for him at Liverpool.
It feels unlikely that Alexander-Arnold would go back to playing at right-back if he’s able to star in midfield at a major tournament.
Should he not quite make the grade as a starter for the Three Lions, maybe Slot will err towards playing him in the position he always has with Liverpool.
In our opinion, it does all rest on what happens between now and mid-July. With his contract talks still ongoing, Liverpool should also bear in mind what Alexander-Arnold himself wants.
What’s clear is that wherever he plays, Trent is a pure difference maker.