30 January 2023 , 11:13
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Former England manager Sam Allardyce has claimed that Jurgen Klopp should reconsider his stance and utilise Trent Alexander-Arnold in a midfield role after he was hooked during Liverpool's FA Cup defeat against Brighton.
Alexander-Arnold was hauled off on the hour mark in Sunday's reverse against the Seagulls, who advanced to the fifth round of the tournament courtesy of a stunning last-gasp winner from in-form winger Karou Mitoma.
The 24-year-old, who looked less than impressed and was seen shaking his head as he left the pitch, has endured a torrid campaign and has been heavily scrutinised by fans and pundits alike.
Alexander-Arnold has evolved into one of Liverpool's most influential players since breaking into the first-team ranks but his defensive deficiencies are nothing new and have led to several people calling for the talented right-back to be played in a midfield role.
Klopp, however, has previously hit out at that notion and even took aim at Gareth Southgate after the Three Lions boss used the Reds academy graduate in a midfield position for the national team, questioning why anybody would want to wedge the "best right-back in the world" into an unfamiliar role.
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Allardyce, though, believes that Alexander-Arnold has the ability to thrive in a midfield role - and that a change could do his confidence the world of good. He told the No Tippy Tippy Football Podcast: "Jurgen has played him in the midfield a few times before now, and I just wonder whether he can actually go there and be great.
"It wouldn't bring up that defending side as much. He has the touch, and I know it's harder in there rather than full-back, but he is such a talent. And unfortunately, he's had a lot of stick and I think it's knocked his confidence."
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Trent Alexander-Arnold was less than impressed after being substituted during Sunday's defeat at Brighton (ITV)Although Klopp made the decision to replace Alexander-Arnold after just 59 minutes on Sunday, the Reds boss defended the academy graduate after the match when he insisted that Alexander-Arnold was left exposed against Mitoma, who has been in deadly form.
He told BBC Radio 5 Live: "We came here after a game a few weeks ago when we weren’t even close to ourselves. Today we played a better game but we concede two goals from set-pieces and that is not allowed in any way. On the left side, Robbo was okay because we helped him but on the other side Trent didn’t get the support.
"Mitoma is really good so, of course, it was tough. We could have defended both goals better. The first is deflected but we can probably block the shot.
"It doesn’t feel great. In time we might see the positives but we wanted to get to the next round. Congratulations to Brighton."