Robertson ‘feels sorry’ for Alexander-Arnold amid Real Madrid issues

Ex-Liverpool star Andrew Robertson has admitted he feels sorry for former teammate Trent Alexander-Arnold due to the increased level of criticism he receives. The pair struck up a brilliant partnership during their respective spells at Anfield.

They were key to Liverpool claiming two Premier League titles under Jurgen Klopp and Arne Slot, while they also played a role in the club’s Champions League success. Despite their glittering spell at Anfield, Alexander-Arnold faced severe criticism for defensive errors, while he has never quite managed to establish himself in the England side.

And Robertson says he sympathised with his former teammate. Speaking on The Overlap, the Scottish defender said: "It's very different when you are English, compared to another nationality.

“I always said to Trent, 'I will never get as much high praise as you, but I'll never get as much criticism as you.'"

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He added: "The way I defended at Liverpool compared to Trent was very different. I had Sadio helping me out and he was a bit more aggressive so if I missed [a tackle], he'd usually be there.

“With Mo [Salah], we didn't want him coming back towards our box. A lot of times, Trent was waiting on someone like [Jordan Henderson] to come over, so, sometimes, I started to feel sorry for him."

Alexander-Arnold has since departed Liverpool, having joined Spanish giants Real Madrid on a free transfer last summer. He has endured an inconsistent spell in La Liga so far, having started just 14 league games during his debut campaign.

That has continued this season, with new manager Jose Mourinho preferring Denzel Dumfries at right-back. But Robertson remains sure that Alexander-Arnold has the talent to be a success at the Bernabeu.

"I've seen him lock out [Kylian] Mbappe at PSG. In the Champions League finals, he was unbelievable," he said. "Trent is a very, very good defender… [in his] best games, he was an unbelievable one-v-one defender.

"Now, at times, he maybe makes mistakes. But we all do. But it's if [Trent] had this stigma around him, that he can't defend. And he's had that from a very early age. It's as if he can't shift it."

Like Alexander-Arnold, Robertson left Liverpool this summer as he joined Premier League rivals Tottenham. The 32-year-old has started all but one of his new club’s league games this season, with Roberto De Zerbi’s men currently without a win and bottom of the table.