England defender Trent Alexander-Arnold was appointed vice-captain last season and operated as a full-fledged false back throughout the season. He is the first managerial change at club level at Liverpool under Arne Slot.
The 25-year-old right-back, a favourite of Jurgen Klopp, was caught on camera sitting on the bench with a disgruntled look on his face when he was substituted midway through the Premier League second leg against Brentford, and left the stadium with an expression that did not clear after the game.
The defender, who Liverpool are also committed to extending his contract, opened up about the defensive changes under the new manager and said that no attacker or defender is allowed to slack off in defence in order to achieve the lowest goals conceded in the Premier League.
“That’s one of the rules that the manager brought in. If you don’t comply to those rules, you won’t play – it’s as simple as that. It’s not just about defenders defending [and] the attackers just watch us defend. It’s a whole team thing.”
“I think the counter-attacks that we’ve potentially been exposed to, we’re able to slow them down and get numbers behind, we’re blocking shots and we’re stopping them from creating anything dangerous. That’s down to the work ethic and it’s what’s demanded.”
”I think if you look at the teams that have been successful in the previous years – including ourselves – it’s been of course we’re a team that can play football and be really exciting at times, but it’s the other end of the pitch that ultimately does win you the league. Normally the team that concedes the least amount of goals or the least amount of big chances will have a really good chance of winning the league.”
Liverpoolfc.com