Trent Alexander-Arnold has been the talk of the town in recent weeks as his Liverpool continues to hang in the balance.
With his contract set to expire in the summer, the Liverpool vice-captain is now free to hold talks with potential suitors to reach a pre-contract agreement.
Real Madrid’s interest in signing Alexander-Arnold is well documented and the La Liga giants officially made their move to sign him yesterday.
And Michael Owen, who made a similar move almost two decades ago, has had his say on the matter.
Real Madrid target Trent Alexander-Arnold told he held secret talks about Liverpool exit
With the January transfer window officially open, Alexander-Arnold, along with the likes of Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk, are all free to speak to other clubs about a transfer.
Liverpool were braced for interest from the Spanish giants for Alexander-Arnold, but yesterday, they made an official bid to snap him up in the January transfer window, as revealed by multiple sources.
However, Liverpool swiftly rejected the offer and claimed they would not entertain the idea of parting ways with him in January as they remain locked in talks to tie him down to a new deal.
Owen feels Real Madrid made an official offer to sign the Liverpool vice-captain in January because he invited their interest in secretive talks with the club.
The former England international wrote on X: “The very fact that Real Madrid have now made their intentions clear towards signing Trent Alexander Arnold leads me to believe that it’s only a matter of time before he signs for them
“If he was going to sign a contract extension, Madrid wouldn’t have officially made their move. Secretive talks will have taken place. Huge news.”
What next for Alexander-Arnold?
Liverpool are in a title race and can’t afford any distractions as they aim to create history in Arne Slot’s first season at the club.
Alexander-Arnold has been fantastic under the Dutchman and has said his future won’t be played out in public.
However, with Real Madrid lodging an official offer, it is very much being played out publicly, so it’s in the best interest of everyone involved if the saga is resolved at the earliest.