Trent Alexander-Arnold’s Liverpool return with Real Madrid acts as a snapshot of two contrasting rebuilds

A hamstring injury may have delayed the inevitable this season, but Trent Alexander-Arnold may finally make his appearance for Real Madrid in a match of notable consequence, potentially doing so in a fitting venue — Anfield.

Alexander-Arnold is in Los Blancos’ traveling squad to face Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday and could play his first game since September 16, back in time for a game that would offer Real Madrid another chance to continue their upward trajectory under new manager Xabi Alonso. It also marks a first chance for Alexander-Arnold to establish himself as an important member of Alonso’s re-envisioned Real Madrid, especially as their most important signing of the summer.

“He is good,” Alonso said on Monday. “He didn’t play [against Valencia on Saturday] because of the context of the game, but he is available for any number of minutes. Tomorrow he may play and after the injury he had we need his qualities; he has great qualities. He is in a new stage for him – sporting, physically and mentally. We need to give him what he needs because he is an exceptional player that we have in our squad.”

• Date: Tuesday, Nov. 4 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
• Location: Anfield — Liverpool, England
• Live stream: Paramount+
• Odds: Liverpool +135; Draw +290; Real Madrid +170

Alonso’s Madrid have fared just fine without Alexander-Arnold, winning all but one game this season and entering Matchday 4 of the Champions League as one of five teams with a perfect record. It is hard not to argue that Alexander-Arnold’s return comes with several benefits for Real Madrid, though, including the fact that Federico Valverde can now slot into the lineup in his familiar midfield role after weeks of filling in for the England international. Alexander-Arnold, though, brings a new genre of dynamism to Real Madrid – there is an argument to be made that he is the best of the modern day right backs, many of them leading with their ability to bomb down the flank and play a crucial role in the attack.

His injury-plagued start to life in Spain means we are almost due for a refresher on what Alexander-Arnold brings to any team. He was easily one of the Premier League’s most impactful attackers in his final three seasons at Liverpool, ranking inside the league’s top 20 for assists during that time with 19. The underlying stats are more impressive — he was ninth in the Premier League for chances created with 188 and sixth for expected assists with 22.56 during that stretch. His tallies in those categories account for a less flashy season when Arne Slot succeeded Jurgen Klopp as the manager, but did not necessarily mean he was less impactful as Liverpool went on to win their second-ever Premier League title.

Whether it comes on Tuesday or not, Alexander-Arnold will likely easily slot into Madrid’s lineup, which is stylistically well-positioned to welcome him. Alonso’s organized restraint means the team’s structure is well-equipped for the right back’s defensive vulnerabilities, his attacking skills adding a genuine boost to their approach. Alonso has designated Kylian Mbappe as the team’s focal point in attack, the France international excelling in a new-look Madrid team with 19 goals in 17 games across all competitions, but he might have an oversized role in their goalscoring operation. No other Madrid player has more than five combined goals in LaLiga and the Champions League this season, while Mbappe is also the team’s leading chance creator across those competitions and ranks second in expected assists. Alexander-Arnold will help diversify their attack from right back, something Los Blancos have already tried with Valverde in the position, the Uruguay international ranks second for assists this season with four.

No matter how Real Madrid line up at Anfield on Tuesday, Alonso’s side are an example of a rebuild that is trending in the right direction, a stark contrast to how Alexander-Arnold’s boyhood club is faring these days.

Do Liverpool miss Trent Alexander-Arnold?

Liverpool may have returned to winning ways with a 2-0 win over Aston Villa on Saturday, but Tuesday’s match against Real Madrid serves as a progress report on their rebuild, their recent struggles still top of mind. The Reds have just two wins in their last eight across all competitions, Slot unable to hit all the right notes in their attack-minded rebuild. Alexander-Arnold’s absence is far from the only issue that plagues the team, especially as Slot deals with differing levels of form between his goal scorers, but the player’s return offers a reminder that the bets the Reds made in the offseason have not exactly paid off just yet.

Alexander-Arnold’s defensive liabilities ensured he was the butt of a few jokes during his final season in England, but Liverpool have replaced him with a right wingback who has an almost nonexistent track record as a defender in Jeremie Frimpong. The Netherlands international, who bore essentially no defensive responsibilities in Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen team, will miss Tuesday’s match with a muscle injury and Conor Bradley is likely to get the nod after starting against Villa, almost forcing an existential question of sorts for Liverpool. Should Slot abandon the uber-attacking approach for the restrained strategy that succeeded against Villa – and won them the Premier League last season?

Bradley, deputized alongside Andrew Robertson at left back for his first league start of the season, was part of a Liverpool team that notched their first clean sheet in 11 games. Slot’s approach on Saturday was essentially a callback to last season’s success, 10 of the 11 starters members of the Premier League-winning side that looked a bit more like Alonso’s Madrid than their current inconsistent selves. Slot’s tease that Bradley might start against Real Madrid means that the back line may be somewhat sturdier on Tuesday, since Bradley is a more natural defender than Dominik Szoboszlai, the midfielder who has also played right back this season.

Los Blancos may gain a lot from Alexander-Arnold’s presence but no matter who slots in at right back for Liverpool on Tuesday, they will be standing in the departed player’s shadow. None of the Reds’ options, available or otherwise, – have been able to live up to Alexander-Arnold’s stature thus far, something that was probably obvious from the moment his move to Real Madrid looked like a possibility. Slot’s job is more about finding a way to play without Alexander-Arnold rather than finding a direct replacement but an in-flux Liverpool may have missed him more over the last several months than Madrid did.

How will Liverpool fans welcome Trent Alexander-Arnold?

How the Liverpool faithful receive Alexander-Arnold upon his return to Anfield is anyone’s guess. He left many fans disappointed with his move in the summer, leading some to believe a frosty reception awaits him, though he will at least be welcomed back by his former colleagues.

“I can only tell you what kind of reception he gets from me; I have great memories of the player and the human being,” Slot said on Monday. “He was my vice-captain last season and I have memories of working with him which were only positive and have memories from watching him on television which were only positive as well. I can remember multiple great moments of his in a Liverpool shirt. He will get a warm welcome from me. Let’s first wait and see if he is on the pitch tomorrow. How the fans react I have no clue but he gets a warm welcome from me, that’s for sure.”

Alonso, a former Liverpool player himself, told Alexander-Arnold to enjoy the moment, regardless of the fans’ reaction to his return.

“We haven’t spoken about that precisely but we have spoken about the team and the club,” he said. “He has to have his own feelings and enjoy it his own way. So I am not going to say how he needs to feel it. For sure his history is different from mine, he was born and bred in Liverpool. I remember him from a young age in the academy and then coming to the first team and winning the Champions League. So he needs to enjoy the moment because it is nice to be back and for him it is going to be nice.”

Trent Alexander Arnold’s tribute to Diogo Jota

Alexander-Arnold led Real Madrid’s delegation as they visited Anfield on Monday, the group paying their respects to his former Liverpool teammate Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva following their deaths in a car accident in July. Alexander-Arnold was joined by Alonso, Real Madrid teammate Dean Huijsen and the club’s director of institutional relations Emilio Butragueno as they laid flowers outside Anfield in a space that has now become a memorial to Jota and Silva.

The right back also left a note that read: “My mate Diogo, you are so missed but still so loved. Yours and Andre’s memories will always live on. I smile every time I think about you and will always remember the great times we shared. Miss you mate every day. Love Trent and family.”

Possible lineups

Liverpool: Giorgi Mamardashvili, Conor Bradley, Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk, Milos Kerkez, Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, Mohamed Salah, Florian Wirtz, Cody Gakpo, Hugo Ekitike

Real Madrid: Thibaut Courtois, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Eder Militao, Dean Huijsen, Alvaro Carreras, Eduardo Camavinga, Aurelien Tchouameni, Jude Bellingham, Arda Guler, Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior

Prediction

Liverpool may figure out how to get out of their slump at some point but Tuesday’s clash against Real Madrid might come too soon for Arne Slot’s in-flux side. Los Blancos are already a well-oiled machine under manager Xabi Alonso, with Kylian Mbappe offering enough flair to make up for the restrained approach preferred by the new boss. It was the recipe that brought them success in their 2-1 win in El Clasico, and it could do the trick again on Tuesday as Alonso’s Madrid target a second statement victory in a short span of time. Pick: Liverpool 0, Real Madrid 2

How to watch

All of the action on Matchday 3 of the UEFA Champions League can be caught on Paramount+, while CBS Sports Network and CBS Sports Golazo Network will have select simultaneous coverage. Each day’s coverage begins with Champions League Matchday, streaming on Paramount+ and CBS Sports Golazo Network ahead of the early games before the UEFA Champions League Today pre-match show begins on Paramount+ and CBS Sports Network. The Golazo Show on Paramount+ also returns for the late slate of matches, while the UEFA Champions League Today post-match show on Paramount+ and CBS Sports Network picks things up at the end of the day. The day’s coverage concludes on CBS Sports Golazo Network with The Champions Club (also streamed live on YouTube) and Scoreline.

Matchday 4 TV schedule

All times U.S./Eastern