Trent Alexander-Arnold has dominated much of the headlines surrounding Gareth Southgate’s England at Euro 2024.
The Liverpool star shone at right-back for his club last season, but has instead been utilised in midfield for his country.
Starts in that role were handed to Alexander-Arnold against both Serbia and Denmark, with the player withdrawn in both games.
He lasted 69 minutes in the 1-0 win over Serbia, before playing just 54 minutes in the 1-1 draw against Denmark.
The Liverpool man was replaced by Chelsea’s Conor Gallagher on both occasions, with the latter a more natural midfielder.
Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer agree over Trent Alexander-Arnold
It remains to be seen what Southgate will do with Alexander-Arnold in the final group game, which comes against Slovenia.
But for Alan Shearer, a change needs to happen in that area, although he and Gary Lineker do agree that it is far from Alexander-Arnold’s fault.
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“It hasn’t worked,” Shearer said on The Rest Is Football podcast. “The midfield gamble, as he put it, in terms of Trent – that I was thinking beforehand ‘okay, let’s have a look at it, let’s see if it works’ – hasn’t worked. So he has to make changes.
Gary Lineker noted: “I actually feel a little bit sorry for Trent,” with Shearer replying: “Yeah I do as well, it’s not at all his fault.”
Will the Liverpool and England star continue under Gareth Southgate?
Many England fans have unsurprisingly been left disappointed with their nation’s showing at Euro 2024 so far.
The Three Lions were tipped by many to go all the way in Germany, but they certainly haven’t looked entirely convincing thus far.
Moreover, other nations such as Germany, Spain and Portugal are in fine form, with each having won both of their games so far.
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Southgate will undoubtedly take the majority of the blame should his England side fail on the international stage once more, with the Alexander-Arnold experiment set for particular further scrutiny if that is the case.
Arguments have been made about other players playing out of position, namely Phil Foden, with Southgate seemingly trying to force his top stars into the starting XI.
A more appropriate approach could involve simply playing players in their favoured roles, although that will inevitably upset those who miss out.
Alexander-Arnold would likely be in that category given how his customary right-back role looks certain to continue to be occupied by Kyle Walker.
The Liverpool man certainly has the backing of his compatriots, with Bukayo Saka noting that he makes the opposition ‘scared’, while Harry Kane loves his vision and delivery from wide areas.