I'm sorry I don't care if you're losing and getting rinsed by the opposition winger all game, that attitude there is pathetic. Like a moody teenager who's been told he's not allowed to play up front. A manager can't allow that lack of effort to go unpunished, he has to be dropped. I don't even know what other options they have at RB but anybody with the slightest bit of self-respect couldn't do worse than that.
Trent can’t defend
- Thread starter Zoo
- Start date
- Status
I'm sorry I don't care if you're losing and getting rinsed by the opposition winger all game, that attitude there is pathetic. Like a moody teenager who's been told he's not allowed to play up front. A manager can't allow that lack of effort to go unpunished, he has to be dropped. I don't even know what other options they have at RB but anybody with the slightest bit of self-respect couldn't do worse than that.
I think they bought a Scottish young RB in so he must be terrible if he can't get a game with the form TAA is in.
A lot of modern fullbacks are questionable pure defenders, especially one on one, but Trent’s biggest problem is his arrogance.
All football fans are bias and build up their own players (you just have to look at how much praise a very average Martial gets on here, even today), but Liverpool are, and always have been, the very worst support for it.
Both fans and pundits hype their players to a dizzying degree (see best of all time van Dijk) and you just have to take one look at TAA’s Instagram and interviews to see how cocky he is.
That’s a massive problem when you need players to be growing, learning and taking responsibility on the pitch. He is told every week he is world class and the best in the world in his position. That sort of thing goes to your head and makes you entitled.
He thinks he is above tracking a runner there and Klopp should be absolutely calling him out for it. He is so overhyped though, that it might well be falling on deaf ears.
All football fans are bias and build up their own players (you just have to look at how much praise a very average Martial gets on here, even today), but Liverpool are, and always have been, the very worst support for it.
Both fans and pundits hype their players to a dizzying degree (see best of all time van Dijk) and you just have to take one look at TAA’s Instagram and interviews to see how cocky he is.
That’s a massive problem when you need players to be growing, learning and taking responsibility on the pitch. He is told every week he is world class and the best in the world in his position. That sort of thing goes to your head and makes you entitled.
He thinks he is above tracking a runner there and Klopp should be absolutely calling him out for it. He is so overhyped though, that it might well be falling on deaf ears.
I agree with this.
Although when you are classified as a World class full back, you do have to be good at both, attack and defending.
Martial gets praise for the things he does well, not many United fans think he is a world class player, we appreciate what he can do in our team with hold up and link play.
Liverpool fans and the manager are loyal to their players and cannot criticise them. Trent knows, he can have 20 bad games and he will still be Liverpool's first choice RB. The same applies to 8/11 of their players, this is bound to bring complacency.
He is making the same mistakes over and over again, we have seen with Ten Hag this season, no one is too big to be dropped. However; might be a bad comparison considering they have won trophies.
He's just a terrible defender who at times also seems to think it's not worth his time.
It’s not even especially amazing from Mitoma, just standard tricky/direct winger interplay stuff that someone like Garnacho should have no bother replicating. What’s amazing in that video is how often Trent isn’t even on the screen.
Why are you brining neville into this? He got absolutely slaughtered for not including him in his euros squad when taa was at his peak. He was the first pundit to ever say anything other than positive about him
I've noticed thats literally the case on RAWK (which I assume is the biggest Liverpool fan forum) where the Moderators will lock threads on any player who is getting (even rational/deserved) criticism.
Love how active the Liverpool fans are in here after bigging him up as one of the best RBs in world football. 
Is that not the young boy Doak who plays on the left wing, he's only turned 17 and already made a couple of sub appearances. Alternatively are you thinking of Patterson who went from Rangers to Everton, he has played a good bit for Everton this season when not injured.
I think what we have seen over the last month, United fans who are critical of players, dont have personal agendas.
I give you a few examples, Luke Shaw, Rashford and AWB have been criticised alot over the past year and now its the total opposite.
Yes, you get some posters who go over the top but in general we want to see improvement.
Because TAA is his golden boy and always ignores his flaws. He beams about him every chance he gets - and I've rarely ever seen him criticise him, and definitely not first.
TAA is a talented footballer who struggles outside of a very specific set-up because he's unsuited to any one "normal" position on the pitch.
He hasn't the offensive skillset to play as a modern winger, his attacking contribution comes from deeper positions using the space opened up by the movement of a winger occupying the opposing fullback. Unfortunately, whilst he occupies the space of one when Liverpool have the ball, he hasn't got the defensive skillset to play as a fullback off the ball and needs support from his midfield to help him when he gets caught out.
When all was well at Liverpool that was fine. The second their midfield could no longer give him that support his game fell apart and he started costing them goals.
He hasn't the offensive skillset to play as a modern winger, his attacking contribution comes from deeper positions using the space opened up by the movement of a winger occupying the opposing fullback. Unfortunately, whilst he occupies the space of one when Liverpool have the ball, he hasn't got the defensive skillset to play as a fullback off the ball and needs support from his midfield to help him when he gets caught out.
When all was well at Liverpool that was fine. The second their midfield could no longer give him that support his game fell apart and he started costing them goals.
He's talking about Calvin Ramsay.
It's not unknown for James Milner to sometimes play at full back, but it's completely unknown for Milner to be short on effort.
I dont know why klopp doesnt try a 352 with robertson and trent as the wingbacks. Also put salah upfront with nunez and take away any defensive responsibility from salah.
Last edited:
Exactly what they should do. Liverpool can't defend any more, that's clear, so they should at least try to outscore teams.
He's always been like that when he has to defend. He either isn't interested in doing it or has such poor awareness and decision making it'd almost be better if he wasn't there half the time.
One of Klopp's biggest assets has been the ability to set up his team to focus on their strengths. That just isn't happening as well this season and Trent is the most obvious example.
He's gone from very occasionally being exposed defensively when Liverpool come up against players like Rashford AND the opposition can actually get decent service to them, to being exposed defensively as often if not more often than most other fullbacks...so now because teams know they can get at Liverpool's defence, it's even worse because of course all teams have scouts so know how to target him. Or at least that's my completely assumed theory.
I think you would encounter the same problem. I don’t think TAA has that super athleticism and he isn’t a great dribbler. All you would do in this case is have him losing athletic battles on the right hand side while also robbing him of any space to provide his distribution.
He is a conundrum. A very specific skillset that requires real sacrifice in the midfield and Liverpool just don’t have the legs there at the moment to compensate.
I would prefer a 4-4-2 personally with TAA at RM and Gomez or Ramsay behind him. Gakpo can play wide left with Robertson behind him. Thiago and one of Henderson or Fabinho in midfield and then Salah and Nunez up top. Salah has become fairly hopeless out wide. That can then also become a 4-3-3 with TAA tucking in and Gakpo moving further forward if needed.
His attitude has been truly awful for a season and a half now.
Do you not think this could be worse? Trent won’t have the pockets of space he has now, and still won’t have any defensive discipline. Gakpo also won’t contribute too much defensively.
You could end up having two players with tired legs getting overrun in midfield instead of three.
I’d argue with that. He could be utilised as a De Bruyne type midfielder, but that isn’t an available role in the Liverpool team, or any Klopp team.
I still think that he’s special enough to have a role created for him in a team. But his work ethic is just shit. Fair weather player, big time Charlie, a luxury. Any lazy descriptor is valid with him.
At least Robinson is a properly good and well rounded full back when you take his offensive game away. Trent just isn’t. At the moment, if he’d never had a breakout season, he’s a £5m back up full back. Nobody would want him.
I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt and say that Klopp signing Jota, Nunez, Diaz and Gakpo and not spending even some of that money on a hard working right sided CM has totally fcuked his position.
But he is either dumb as a bag of rocks, or lazy. Because that kind of behaviour against Brighton isn’t acceptable at PL level, let alone best ever rock and roll heavy metal bestest team in the world level.
I agree with this, his attitude especially on the pitch is the biggest problem for me. He doesn't take defensive jobs enough seriously. He doesn't put in his efforts, throws his body to block the ball when it is in necessary situations or even doesn't track back enough to his position correctly. If you aren't great enough skills, at least you must put your efforts to cover your flaws. However, he doesn't do that.
Last edited:
If he's playing RM there's less responsibility on his shoulders defensively than what there is now. He was turned inside out by Mitoma on Saturday. If he's not at RB then that doesn't happen and maybe teams don't target that side as much.
Going 4-4-2 can't be worse than what's currently happening. It would also get Salah through the middle where I think he's now better suited to playing.
I agree with you about Salah, he needs to be in the box using his quick feet much more than he is.
The legs are gone in midfield though and I think Gakpo/TAA and two of the current crop would still get run through by teams like Brighton.
I know Darwin signing felt necessary at the time with Mane’s departure, but surely, after realizing the midfield has real issues, Gakpo shouldn’t have been the next signing?
It looks to me like two high energy midfielders are crucial buys now, not just to get TAA protected, but to be allowed to play such a high press and not allow other teams so much time on the ball?
https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/spo.../gary-neville-trent-alexander-arnold-20327051
I mean here he is saying he has to get serious about defending. That's a year before this thread was made.
Yeah I agree about the Gakpo signing. He hasn’t started well either. We’re asking the same players to do the same job and they clearly can’t. Henderson has been struggling a fair bit.
Fair enough then, apologies @RacingClub . I know bugger all about Calvin Ramsey but if he is a worse defender than TAA he must be shit
To be fair half of the CAF have been raving about Shaw for years. Would bet if Trent was a United player he would've been bigged up by us.Love how active the Liverpool fans are in here after bigging him up as one of the best RBs in world football.
Love how active the Liverpool fans are in here after bigging him up as one of the best RBs in world football.
Best RB ever more like
Better than Cafu I recall being said
I didn't mean this as a prediction, but apparently it happened this evening
Why hasn't Klopp tried him in midfield this season? Their midfield has been poor and while Alexander-Arnold has been poor at right-back he still possess a brilliant delivery. I don't think either their midfield or right-back could be any worse.
Not by his current form.
Didn't they sign a young right back in the summer who is highly rated? You'd think Klopp would be giving him some minutes.
You sure, Shaw has gone through many dire patches and has often been hailed as the best thing since bread.
When Shaw has gone through poor form, he has been slated around here yet rightly praised when in good form. Trent is going through a bad patch but is still a good player so expect him to come through this. How someone hasn't assisted him in his defending like the coaches is beyond me unless he is making the same mistakes.
- Status