Wayne Rooney is fearful that one Liverpool player ‘could get found out’ if he starts for his country at Euro 2024.
Of the four Reds named in the provisional England squad for the tournament, Trent Alexander-Arnold seems the likeliest to feature for Gareth Southgate’s team, although the debate continues as to what position he’d play.
Speaking to Gary Neville on The Overlap, the ex-Manchester United striker insisted that Kobbie Mainoo should be picked ahead of the Reds’ vice-captain in the middle of the park, while also declaring Kyle Walker to be ‘the best right-back in the world’.
Rooney said of Liverpool’s number 66: “It’s not that he’s not good in [midfield]. You see it against Everton the other week. Some of the passes he’s hitting are incredible and it’s probably only Becks [David Beckham] who hits them similar to him.
“But to play in midfield, that discipline you need from a defensive point of view, especially when you come up against the bigger teams, I think he could get found out a bit.”
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Is there any more tiresome narrative in English football than the ‘Trent can’t defend’ hobby horse?
The Liverpool vice-captain actually made more tackles per game than Mainoo in the 2023/24 Premier League (1.13 to 0.98, via FBref), and he’d offer a more experienced figure in the middle of the park, for all of the United teenager’s undoubted talents.
Trent 100% deserves to start for England at Euro 2024, but if Southgate disagrees, that’s fine by us if it keeps him fresher for the resumption of club football later in the summer!
You can view Rooney’s comments on Trent below (from 40:20), via The Overlap on YouTube:
