Feel that Kieran Trippier’s all round game is ahead of Trent Alexander-Arnold, asserts Gareth Southgate
Trent Alexander-Arnold
|Amidst criticism over not picking Trent Alexander-Arnold, England boss Gareth Southgate has revealed that he picked Kieran Trippier instead as he believes his all-round game is better. The Liverpool right-back was picked for the international break but didn’t make a single appearance.
Despite Liverpool’s run of form this season, Trent Alexander-Arnold has still shown his star quality with the right-back often proving key for the Reds despite his struggles with form. However, while that earned him a call-up for the England national squad, the right-back never featured in either of the Three Lions’ games against Italy or Germany. That saw Gareth Southgate heavily criticized by nearly every England supporter, especially with the team struggling to find their footing.
But that has been the case with Alexander-Arnold and England as the right-back has only sparingly featured for the Three Lions over the years. Yet while his place in their World Cup squad is far from gone, Gareth Southgate has delivered a blow to Alexander-Arnold as he admitted that he believes Kieran Trippier is a better all-round option than the Liverpool man. The England boss also added that he has had conversations with every player he left out against Germany to make it clear where they sit.
“The other night [against Italy], we didn’t need the left-back cover, but against Germany we did because of the way we went with the team so we needed Chilly [Ben Chilwell] on the bench and we had Kieran who, at the moment, I feel his all round game is ahead [of Trent],” Southgate said, reported the Telegraph.
“I didn’t want any player to sit in the stand for two matches, so I think the way we manage a group of people has been a big strength for us in the tournaments and we need to do that. I’ve had long conversations with all of them, been very clear with them about where they stand, what they need to improve upon, what they’re doing well so they’re very clear on where they sit.”
