Liverpool star Trent Alexander-Arnold continues to dominate the headlines at Euro 2024 given his England predicament.
The Anfield ace has been played in midfield by manager Gareth Southgate in the nation’s first two games in Germany.
He played 69 minutes against Serbia and 54 against Denmark, with England winning 1-0 and drawing 1-1 in those matches respectively.
Up next is a meeting with Slovenia, with first place still on the line in Group C ahead of the final round of matches.
Southgate has plenty of decisions to make, one of which will once again involve Liverpool man Alexander-Arnold.
Robbie Fowler notices ‘strange’ Trent Alexander-Arnold issue for England
Plenty of pundits have already made up their minds on the decision to play him in midfield, with Chris Sutton believing the experiment has failed, while Emmanuel Petit believes he looks lost in the position.
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Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler has now added to the debate, saying in the Mirror [print edition, 23 June, page 77]: “The best managers build teams that are better than the sum of their parts.
“And if it ain’t working, then they fix it. Trent Alexander-Arnold is a case in point. Gareth doesn’t fancy Trent at full-back because he feels he has better options in Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier.
“But the gamble of crowbarring Trent in alongside Declan Rice in midfield hasn’t worked. If anything, an elite pivot has to be even more switched on defensively than a full-back because their role is to read where danger is coming from and plug the gap before trouble is allowed to escalate.
“It’s a specialist job. Asking TAA to do that when, in my opinion, he is one of the best right-backs in the game, seems strange to say the least.
“Trent HAS to play. Surely the answer is to deploy him as a wing-back, with Walker, John Stones and Marc Guehi stiffening the centre of defence.”
Will Liverpool star Trent Alexander-Arnold continue in midfield?
England will be keen to finish their group stage off strongly against Slovenia, who currently sit third on two points.
Denmark meanwhile occupy second spot in Group C, also on two points, with Serbia rock bottom on just one point.
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Southgate will undoubtedly be playing various scenarios around in his head as the match approaches, with plenty of pressure on his shoulders.
There really is little room for error, with the man in the dugout perhaps needing to pick a more appropriate XI tactically, as opposed to just selecting his best players.
Alexander-Arnold could, therefore, be the unlucky one if that scenario does play out, with Southgate likely to rely on Walker at right-back once more.
A change of formation could allow the Liverpool man to start once more, while Southgate may simply ignore all of the noise and continue with Alexander-Arnold in midfield.
But with Conor Gallagher having replaced him in both matches so far, and with the presence of more natural midfielders Kobbie Mainoo and Adam Wharton, that does seem unlikely.