Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold has been the main talking point of England’s Euro 2024 so far.
Although they are now certain to qualify for the knockout stages of the tournament, England have been poor in their two games so far.
For both of the matches against Serbia and Denmark, Liverpool academy graduate Alexander-Arnold started in midfield.
Unfortunately, things have not gone well for Trent. He is far from alone in this, but Alexander-Arnold has been well under-par so far.
As a result, the Liverpool man looks set to drop out of the starting XI for Tuesday’s match with Slovenia. According to Man United legend Paul Scholes though, Trent should simply be moved to a new position instead.
Paul Scholes backs Trent Alexander-Arnold change
Alexander-Arnold has a right to be disappointed about Southgate’s decision to take him out of the line-up for the final group game.
The 25-year-old hasn’t been amazing in the two games to this point, but nobody in an England shirt has. From the midfield and forward players, it has pretty much been a disaster.
That is not on Alexander-Arnold, but on Southgate. The manager’s cautious tactics have limited Liverpool’s No.66 in the extreme.
Nevertheless, criticism has rained down on Alexander-Arnold more than any other player. Emmanuel Petit said the Liverpool man looked ‘lost‘ in midfield, for example.
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One man who knows what it takes to play in the middle of the park for England is Paul Scholes. The 49-year-old won 66 caps between 1997 and 2004.
As a Man United man through and through, Scholes has never been particularly fond of Liverpool or their players.
But taking to TNT Sports’ Instagram page to name his preferred XI for the Slovenia game, the pundit backed Alexander-Arnold to stay in the team.
Rather than playing at right-back or in midfield though, Scholes has suggested that Southgate try Trent at left-back.
Could Alexander-Arnold play at left-back for England?
You can understand the logic of Scholes assertion here. As Robbie Fowler said, a player of Alexander-Arnold’s quality really has to play.
Although it isn’t really working in midfield – again, Trent should not be blamed for that – Southgate should put the Scouser in somewhere.
For a lot of people, that should simply be in the position he’s played his whole career at Liverpool in: right-back.
Kyle Walker is looking his age more often than not these days and Alexander-Arnold should at least be given the courtesy of playing his natural role.
But Walker is a Southgate favourite. As a result, it seems unlikely that the Man City player will be dropped now.
With that in mind, there is no reason Trent couldn’t be slotted in on the left. With Luke Shaw still injured, Kieran Trippier has been playing. Trippier has done fine, but Alexander-Arnold would offer so much more than the Newcastle man. It won’t happen of course, but why not?