Trent Alexander-Arnold’s exit from Liverpool will cost him the unconditional support of fans, according to former Reds defender Jamie Carragher.
The 26-year-old confirmed on Monday he would be ending his 20-year association with the club this summer, when he is widely expected to be joining Spanish giants Real Madrid.
Carragher, a one-club man who made 737 appearances for the Reds in all competitions, says Alexander-Arnold’s contribution to the club “will never be diminished”, but believes it will change how he is remembered and thought of by fans.
“Players are loved even more when they genuinely mean it when they say they do not want to play for anyone else,” Carragher wrote in a column in The Telegraph.
After 20 years at Liverpool Football Club, now is the time for me to confirm that I will be leaving at the end of the season.
This is easily the hardest decision I’ve ever made in my life.
I know many of you have wondered why or been frustrated that I haven’t spoken about this… pic.twitter.com/emAw5RvXq0
— Trent Alexander-Arnold (@TrentAA) May 5, 2025
“If that image of the home-grown talent living the dream is an illusion, people feel let down.
“By leaving Liverpool, Alexander-Arnold is making it harder for his own club to win its 21st league title and seventh European Cup. That is bound to stir emotions.
“With Monday’s statement, the unconditional support Alexander-Arnold enjoyed from the Kop when he was fully committed to Liverpool has gone.”
Alexander-Arnold said opting to leave Liverpool was “easily the hardest decision” he had made in his life.
Two of his current team-mates, Curtis Jones and Cody Gakpo, described him as a “legend” in Instagram posts on Monday.
