‘The point is…’ – Guardian journalist responds to ex-Man Utd players’ unforgiving Trent verdicts

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·16 juin 2024

‘The point is…’ – Guardian journalist responds to ex-Man Utd players’ unforgiving Trent verdicts

Of the 26 players in Gareth Southgate’s England squad for Euro 2024, surely none have been in the headlines this week more than Trent Alexander-Arnold.

The debate as to whether the Liverpool vice-captain will start against Serbia tonight – and in what position if he does – has raged throughout the past fortnight, with two ex-Manchester United players in Wayne Rooney and Roy Keane not holding back with their unforgiving assessments of the 25-year-old.

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However, in a piece for The Guardian, Jonathan Liew has come out in defence of the Reds’ number 66, pointing out how his passes are ‘never simply played, but measured’ and comparing that quality to being the difference ‘between a bartender and a mixologist’.

The journalist wrote within the article: “The point is not that defending is irrelevant to the job. The point is that it is primarily a collective endeavour, and to home in on the individual skill set of one player – with what at times appears to be a laser-focused vindictiveness – risks missing the bigger picture.

“Virtually every serious international team recognises that you want your most creative passers where they can do most damage.”

Trent can be lax with some of his defensive work at times, but the volume of criticism he gets for that aspect of the game is completely over the top, especially when he’s undoubtedly one of the most gifted footballers in the world in possession.

Southgate’s use of him in a midfield role for England shouldn’t be interpreted as a slight on the 25-year-old’s defending, but rather a nod to his unparalled playmaking instincts, which the manager understandably wants to unlock given the potency of the forwards in the Three Lions’ squad.

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As Liew rightly argues elsewhere in his article, many players are no longer pigeon-holed into whatever role they fulfil on the initial teamsheet, citing the examples of Oleksandr Zinchenko and Toni Kroos frequently dovetailing between full-back and central midfield.

The journalist is also right to call out the ‘laser-focused vindictiveness’ from pundits such as Rooney and Keane, who are far from alone in making Trent their easy scapegoat for a post-match rant, much like the criticism bordering on harassment that Darwin Nunez has had to endure throughout his time at Liverpool.

With a player of the 25-year-old’s mercurial qualities, there’ll always be an element of risk versus reward. Perhaps there are chinks in the armour that opponents can exploit, but ultimately those are outweighed by how much can be gained from giving him the ball and letting him weave his magic.

We’d love nothing more than to see him produce a masterclass for England tonight and finally convert his lingering doubters.

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