Trent Alexander-Arnold latest - Liverpool contract stance, Real Madrid claim, Arne Slot update
Trent Alexander-Arnold will enter the final six months of his Liverpool contract when the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Eve. It is now three-and-a-half years since the Reds right-back signed his current deal in late July 2021.
Alisson, Andy Robertson, Fabinho, Jordan Henderson and Virgil van Dijk also agreed to extensions that summer. Of those four, only one has re-signed since - Alisson. Fabinho and Henderson left Liverpool two years later, while Van Dijk is in the same situation as Alexander-Arnold.
If no extension happens over the next 12 months, Robertson will face the same scenario next year. But as Auld Lang Syne rings out around Liverpool this New Year, the club's vice-captain is the focus.
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What's the latest?
The Madrid-based tabloid sports newspaper Marca claimed on the front page of its Saturday edition that "Alexander-Arnold wants to come to Madrid." The headline added that "the player has already informed Liverpool."
On their website, they say Alexander-Arnold signing a contract extension is becoming "more and more unlikely". The prospect of playing for Real Madrid - alongside his great friend Jude Bellingham - is said to have "seduced" him.
Alexander-Arnold is the only one who knows what he wants to do next year. However, the ECHO understands that Alexander-Arnold has yet to tell Liverpool he wishes to join Madrid.
What has Arne Slot said?
During a press conference earlier this week, Arne Slot said: "If we would [have made any breakthroughs], then it's probably not the moment to tell you now. In general, I don't talk about contract situations here. It would be a surprise if I was the one to announce that one of them has extended.
"Keep asking, that's your job, but you're probably not going to get an answer from me. It's clear that from 1 January, maybe for you guys (in the media), things change a lot, but they are in constant talks with the club, and let's wait and see what happens."
What has Alexander-Arnold said?
Alexander-Arnold said during an interview with Sky Sports back in September: "I have always said I want to captain the club; that is an aim of mine and a goal of mine. (But) whether that happens is out of my hands.
"I have been at the club for 20 years now. I have signed four or five contract extensions, and none of those have been played out in public—and this one won't be either. I want to be a Liverpool player this season (as a minimum)."
