Trent Alexander-Arnold has now had his first taste of Real Madrid action in the Club World Cup.
He transferred from boyhood club Liverpool to Los Blancos earlier this summer, causing much anguish back in Merseyside, with many reports suggesting Madrid paid as much as €10m to secure his early release for the summer tournament.
The 26-year-old – ranked at no.2 in FourFourTwo's list of the best right-backs in the world right now – made his debut against Al Hilal in the group-stage game held at the Hard Rock Stadium in Florida, to harsh reviews in Spain.
Trent Alexander-Arnold introduced to the harsh Spanish press
Spanish newspapers, particularly some of those covering the country’s two major clubs, Madrid and Barcelona, are not known for their delicate treatment of negative sentiments.
In their signature style, they afforded Alexander-Arnold no leeway in his Los Blancos opener, which saw him start and play 65 minutes before being replaced by Lucas Vazquez.
Spanish outlet AS were so dissatisfied with their new man’s performance that they refused to even give him a rating in their match report, an unenviable honour also handed to Raul Asencio and Jude Bellingham.
Drawing particular ire from the scribes was that early-release fee paid by Madrid, with the journalists believing it was paid for instant results rather than a period for the Merseysider to acclimatise.
The match also came as former Bournemouth defender Dean Huijsen’s debut, but was also adjudged to have “much to do” to adapt to his new team.
New manager Xabi Alonso was less vicious about the pair, saying: “I’m happy for them and congratulate them on a memorable day for them. Dean was very good, and Trent has gone from less to more. Both of them gave us a significant leap in quality.”
In FourFourTwo’s opinion, there shouldn’t be too much read into reactive post-match thoughts in the Spanish press.
The entire Madrid team did not exactly cover themselves in glory, and with the fanfare of his arrival, Alexander-Arnold makes for an easy target.
Make some inspired interventions in the coming days and weeks, and he’ll be hailed a king just as quickly as he was demonised following the full-time whistle.
Alexander-Arnold is worth €75m, according to Transfermarkt.
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