Gary Neville knows exactly how good 'devastated' Trent Alexander-Arnold is

Trent Alexander-Arnold received sympathy from Gary Neville after he was dropped for England's final group game at Euro 2024 - with the former Manchester United stalwart's respect for the Liverpool star's talents clear.

The Anfield fan favorite had been deployed in an unorthodox midfield role for the Three Lions in their first two games at the tournament with his showings proving divisive among observers. Former Old Trafford heroes Roy Keane and Wayne Rooney were among those who felt that the experiment of using him in an unfamiliar role had failed.

However, Red Devils legend Neville appeared more diplomatic in his stance on Alexander-Arnold's displays as he admitted his unease at Southgate's decision to leave the player out for England's clash with Slovenia. In the end, the Reds full-back was limited to just six minutes of action as his country was held to a 0-0 stalemate.

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Despite only playing 129 minutes across his nation's three games in Group C, he created more chances than any of his teammates in those matches. Furthermore, the decision to install Conor Gallagher in the Liverpool man's place for the Slovenia clash backfired - with the Chelsea midfielder replaced at half-time by United's Kobbie Mainoo.

Before the game, Neville admitted on ITV that he felt for Alexander-Arnold after Southgate's decision to name him as a substitute. He said: "I do want to mention Trent Alexander-Arnold. I know it’s a big boy’s game and you can be left out of a football match, but I do feel that this is the best right-back we’ve ever produced by a million miles in terms of in possession, and he’s now sat on the bench wondering ‘what the hell’s going on?’. He’ll probably be devastated."

Following a listless performance from the Three Lions in Cologne, the pundit was left convinced that players of the Liverpool star's quality were being mismanaged by their national team boss. He said: "You mention Alexander-Arnold, Palmer, [Jude] Bellingham, Saka, Mainoo, [Phil] Foden – these are massive talents and we really cannot mishandle these talents, we really will regret it, and Gareth will as well.

"All I would say ahead of Sunday is these lads are there and staring him in the face now, they have come on in the second half and improved us enormously", Neville asserted. "They are our best technical players and the ones who look the most comfortable on the ball and make us look like a team."

His admiration for Alexander-Arnold is nothing new either, with the United icon having spoken in glowing terms about the Reds defender previously. Going back to 2021, he even compared the Anfield ace to Brazilian full-back masters Roberto Carlos and Cafu as he assessed his prodigious talents.

He said on Sky Sports: "You're mentioning them in the same breath as probably the two greatest full-backs I've ever seen, Roberto Carlos and Cafu. For so many years they were the shining example. They transformed full-back play. I know there had been attacking full-backs before, the Liverpool teams of the 70s.

"Alexander-Arnold is an absolute phenomenon when it comes to the quality of his passing, his delivery. It's something I've never seen before from a full-back. It's like De Bruyne, it's Beckham, it's Gerrard, and they're attacking players. He's playing at right-back, it's the highest accolade I could pay him."