Trent Alexander-Arnold Breaks Down After Final Liverpool Game | OneFootball

Trent Alexander-Arnold has admitted that he didn’t know how Liverpool fans would receive him during his final appearance for the club in Sunday’s last game of the season.

Alexander-Arnold has reached the end of his Liverpool contract without signing a new one and will leave his boyhood team in a matter of days to join Real Madrid. A nominal transfer fee allowing the defender to play for his new club at the FIFA Club World Cup in three weeks’ time ensures the Reds aren’t left completely empty handed. But it is still a massive steal for the Spanish giants.

Liverpool fans heckled and booed Alexander-Arnold at Anfield during the recent game against Arsenal, and it seems he feared similar would happen for the visit of Crystal Palace on the day Arne Slot’s side were presented with the Premier League trophy.

“I didn’t know what to expect stepping out at Anfield today after what had happened,” he told Sky Sports after the final whistle, initially holding back tears and then breaking down after the interview.

Alexander-Arnold was left on the bench when Liverpool travelled to Brighton & Hove Albion a few days after the booing had taken place. He then didn’t start against Crystal Palace and there was no guarantee he’d get on the pitch to bid a proper farewell to the only club he’s known for 20 years.

It was his own insistence on playing that saw him replace Conor Bradley at the midway point. Thankfully, for his sake, it was a warm reception from the supporters.

“I wanted to play for the club one more time,” Alexander-Arnold said. “I told the manager, and he trusted me. The reception means so much to me. I have never felt more loved and more cared for than today. I hope that one day the fans are able to recognise the hard work I put in for this team.

“From six to 26, 20 years is a very long time. I have loved every second of it, it has been an honour and a privilege to be a part of this club. I’ll remember these moments for the rest of my life. This day will go down as the best in my life.”

Alexander-Arnold may owe some of that to former boss Jürgen Klopp, who was put out at the way the player had been treated on his previous Anfield appearance.

“I don't want to tell you what you have to think. I can tell you what you think is wrong,” Klopp said at a charity event in Liverpool on Friday. “I don’t tell you that you should not be angry, you should not be disappointed, I tell you don’t forget. This club doesn’t forget.

“I watched the [Arsenal] game when he came on and I heard the booing. I switched the [television] off. Honestly, I could not have been more disappointed at this moment. He gave absolutely everything and wears the Liverpool badge in the skin.”