Slot’s “madman” must now never play for Liverpool again

Liverpool are Premier League champions. Champions of England again for a record-equalling 20th time. Nothing should overshadow that remarkable achievement amid a stunning debut campaign for manager, Arne Slot.

And yet, an unwanted distraction or sub-plot has emerged following the circus surrounding Trent Alexander-Arnold’s future, with the England international confirming the news last week that he is set to end his lengthy association with the Anfield side at the climax of the campaign.

A boyhood hero and academy graduate, the 26-year-old – now set to enter his prime years – has decided to take on the next chapter of his career at Real Madrid, amid the expectation that he will join the LaLiga giants on a free transfer this summer.

That seemingly inevitable news was met with an understandably mixed reaction from the home crowd during the Reds’ 2-2 draw with Arsenal on Sunday afternoon, with Alexander-Arnold the subject of a fair few boos and jeers as he entered the fray late on.

On the evidence of that cameo, it looks as if the right-back’s stunning Merseyside journey is set to end on a sour note. Perhaps, the time may have come to take him out of the firing line for the remaining games of the season.

Trent’s cameo in numbers vs Arsenal

There was life after the likes of Philippe Coutinho and Sadio Mane – there will be life after Trent at Anfield.

With Conor Bradley lying in wait to take on that right-back berth, the succession plan is in place for Slot and co, with the runaway champions deserving to end 2024/25 on a high, rather than being overshadowed by talk over their departing star.

The defender with the most assists to his name in Premier League history, the rampaging full-back is an undoubtedly “world-class player”, as per former boss Jurgen Klopp, but – as Sunday showcased – he isn’t irreplaceable.

Indeed, despite a largely positive cameo, in which he enjoyed an 86% pass accuracy rate and won 100% of his total duels, Alexander-Arnold was perhaps culpable for the away side’s equaliser, having failed to track goalscorer Mikel Merino.

That may appear a harsh assessment, although the Liverpool man was level with the Spaniard as Martin Odegaard struck from range, although it was the Euro 2024 winner who reacted far quicker to pounce on the rebound and head home.

Such a moment perhaps epitomised the ongoing debate surrounding Alexander-Arnold’s defensive prowess, with now the time to hand the reins to young Bradley permanently for the remaining two games.

Trent has been a centre-piece of success on Merseyside in recent times, but now he belongs to the past. The same could also be said of club-record signing, Darwin Nunez.

The Liverpool star who Slot now needs to replace

Despite the lack of a recognised centre-forward alternative to Nunez, it would appear that Slot has gone out of his way to find an alternative solution this season, rather than deploying the £85m man through the middle.

Indeed, the Uruguayan “madman” – as described by club legend Jamie Carragher – has started just eight league games all season under the new regime, with rumours rife that he will be on his way this summer.

Signed by Klopp in the summer of 2022, Nunez looked set to be Liverpool’s equivalent to Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, not least after getting the better of the Norwegian after scoring in the Community Shield at the start of that first campaign.

Unfortunately for the now-25-year-old, he has since scored just 40 goals in 141 games in all competitions. In that same time frame, Haaland has netted 120 times from 139 outings for the Citizens.

The forgotten figure is now looking more like Rasmus Hojlund than Haaland, in truth, having actually been outscored by Manchester United’s struggling striker in 2024/25. Hojlund boasts ten goals across all fronts, while Nunez, by contrast, has netted just seven times under Slot’s watch.

For a player with his hefty price tag, that return simply isn’t good enough, with Sunday’s brief cameo having again laid bare his woes, after losing the ball on six occasions from just 11 touches.

Again described as ‘peripheral’ following his arrival from the bench, as per the Liverpool Echo’s Ian Doyle, the misfiring marksman isn’t even providing the chaos these days, with time having come for a permanent upgrade and replacement to be acquired this summer.

And so, while the case of Trent may point to a player whom Liverpool are begrudgingly being forced to lose, for Nunez, this is a man for whom Slot surely can’t wait to be rid of.

With his future looking set to lie elsewhere this summer, perhaps we have now seen the list of the former Benfica man in the red jersey.