🔴 EOTK Insider Opinion: Southgate's Trent experiment didn't work but that shouldn't diminish the fullback's value 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

We doubt we'll see the fullback play in midfield again.

There’s no questioning the notion that, at his best, Trent Alexander-Arnold is, at the very least, one of the world’s leading fullbacks (if not the leading right-back).

Despite the young Englishman’s perceived positional superiority, however, the calls for Jurgen Klopp to shunt one of his most prized assets further up the pitch have yet to cease.

The German, to his credit, has kept the faith in the 22-year-old as a right-back. Of course, in Liverpool’s system, the position is far from being restrictive, allowing the No.66 the freedom to roam further afield and link-up with the midfield and forward line.

Nonetheless, others have been less resistant to such temptation, with England boss Gareth Southgate handing Alexander-Arnold a start in the middle of the park alongside skipper Jordan Henderson against Andorra this evening.

Excelling in a particular role for Klopp’s Champions League and Premier League-winning team, there was certainly no immediate need to attempt the positional switch.

Having said that, versatility is a prized trait in the German’s eyes, and with the level of passing ability at Trent’s disposal, the experiment was technically worthwhile on paper.

It’s fair to say that things didn’t quite go as well as the former Middlesbrough coach had hoped, as the defender was pulled into the backline after half-time.

Some of the reaction to the midfield cameo, however, has been even more baffling than the initial decision to slot the Academy graduate into the middle of the park.

A glance at the Twittersphere will scrounge up some truly bizarre anti-Trent propaganda that is the preserve of narrow-minded neutrals who refuse to even acknowledge the value he brings to Klopp’s Liverpool side.

From some other commentators, there’s been some headshaking at the 22-year-old’s inability to follow in the footsteps of fellow world-class defenders, of the likes of Joshua Kimmich and Philipp Lahm, and carry out a transition from the backline to midfield.

Originally, the guiding intention behind this piece had been to find some glimmer of opportunity or positivity from Southgate’s midfield gamble.

However, upon further reflection, it’s arguably somewhat pointless to justify the continuation of such an experiment or to pursue critique on the basis that the fullback is a world-class talent.

As such, we at EOTK Insider question the need to forensically examine the player’s worth based on his ability to flit seamlessly between a midfield and defensive role.

That may seem slightly controversial given Klopp’s admiration for versatility, but since when has it been expected of fullbacks to fulfill a midfield role as expertly as their favoured position?

The likelihood is that we’ll never see Alexander-Arnold in Southgate’s midfield again; an eventuality most Liverpool fans (not to mention Jurgen Klopp) will most likely be happy to see.

That having been said, that’s not to rule out the possibility of Klopp ever toying with the idea of the fullback exercising his creativity more centrally on the pitch.

Given that the midfield is, at the moment, seen as more of an engine room than an orchestra, however, it will require a notable change of thinking from the manager.

The fact of the matter, however, is that whilst the dropoff in quality (no disrespect to Neco Williams) at right-back beyond Alexander-Arnold is as significant as it is, it makes no sense to harm Liverpool’s structure nor the No.66’s contributions in the position in the meantime.

By extension, if Klopp isn’t prepared to play the fullback in midfield, it makes even less sense to chuck him in a new role during international duty in order to accommodate a world-class talent Southgate paradoxically doesn’t see as being either good or suitable enough to play at right-back.

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