Alexander-Arnold has not played since 16 September after a hamstring problem forced him off during Real’s Champions League win over Marseille but the England international is available to play on Tuesday having recovered from that injury.
Liverpool manager Arne Slot said he has “only positive” memories of working with the full-back but does not know what kind of reception he will get from the Reds’ supporters at Anfield.
“I have great memories of the player and the human being,” said Slot. “How our fans will react, I have no clue how that’s going to be. He gets a warm welcome from me, that’s for sure.”
Alexander-Arnold’s former Liverpool team-mate Ryan Gravenberch said he will “give him a hug” because he is “obviously a friend of mine”.
Real Madrid’s head coach Xabi Alonso said that while he and Alexander-Arnold have not spoken about what kind of reception he will get “precisely”, they spoke “about the team, the club”.
Alonso, who was a key player in Liverpool’s Champions League success of 2005, added: “He has to have his own feelings and enjoy it his own way, so I am not going to say how he needs to feel.
“For sure his history is different from mine. He was born and bred in Liverpool, I remember him from a young age in the academy and then coming to the first team and winning the Champions League.
“So he needs to enjoy that moment because it is nice to be back and for him it is going to be nice.”