Liverpool rejected a transfer offer from Real Madrid to sign Trent Alexander-Arnold during the winter transfer window instead of as a free agent at the end of this season
Real Madrid were reputedly willing to pay Liverpool around £20million for Trent Alexander-Arnold during the winter transfer window. Real approached the club on New Year’s Eve, but the Reds refused to negotiate a January move.
As of New Year’s Day, Alexander-Arnold can now legally talk with overseas clubs and sign a pre-contract agreement to join one at the start of July when the player’s contract ends. However, former Reds striker Michael Owen believes talks have already happened between the two parties.
Jamie Carragher also claims Alexander-Arnold’s team will have told Real to make that approach, knowing Liverpool would reject it. However, the ECHO understands that as things stand, the player has not communicated to the Reds that he has chosen to join Real.
The Times, though, reports that the Spanish club were ready to offer about a £20million transfer fee to sign Alexander-Arnold this month instead of attempting to have the England international sign a pre-contract agreement. Real require reinforcements at right-back as Dani Carvajal is out for the season with a serious knee injury.
The 33-year-old winger-turned-fullback Lucas Vazquez is playing deputising in that position for them. Federico Valverde, a midfielder, is their only other senior option should Vazquez not be available to play in a particular match.
That injury to Carvajal appears to be why Madrid attempted to sign Alexander-Arnold six months earlier than anticipated. After all, the player acknowledged to Sky Sports in September that “I want to be a Liverpool player this season [as a minimum].”
A fortnight after that interview, Carvajal ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament, external collateral ligament, and popliteus tendon in his right knee. Three months later, Real made their move, but they never got as far as negotiating numbers with the Reds as the ECHO understands they have no interest in selling the club’s vice-captain.