Trent Alexander-Arnold was booed by some Liverpool fans on his return to Anfield with Real Madrid, and Jamie Carragher has defended the supporters’ reaction.
20:52, 04 Nov 2025Updated 20:55, 04 Nov 2025
Jamie Carragher defended Liverpool fans after they booed Trent Alexander-Arnold on his return to Anfield.
Jamie Carragher says that Liverpool supporters were entirely justified in giving Trent Alexander-Arnold a “poor” reception during his first return to Anfield since departing the club this summer. The 27-year-old moved to Real Madrid – agreeing terms in May this year – after allowing his contract with Liverpool to run down.
Meanwhile, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk, who both had less than a year left on their last deals, opted to stay put with the Reds. Alexander-Arnold’s decision to depart with minimal financial compensation to the club where he began his career enraged the Anfield faithful.
That anger was evident tonight as jeers echoed around the ground when the right-back returned to Merseyside. However, the England right-back was left on the subs bench.
READ MORE: Arne Slot fires Liverpool reunion message to Trent Alexander-Arnold amid nervous waitREAD MORE: Virgil van Dijk’s Real Madrid transfer dream after Liverpool star responded to move
Peter Schmeichel felt that the reaction from Liverpool supporters was “annoying” and “disgusting in a way.” Jamie Carragher, who spent his entire senior career at Liverpool, defended the Anfield crowd.
Carragher told CBS Sports: “I don’t agree with what you’ve said there. I think the supporters decide what type of reception he gets and the reason why the reception will be poor tonight, which I would expect, is because Trent throughout those 20 years, as I’ve said, has played the position of; ‘I’m a supporter on the pitch’.
“So them supporters who are all in this stadium wouldn’t leave on a free transfer to go play for Real Madrid. Now, okay, it’s his career, he gets one career, he’s a young man, he’s been brilliantly successful at the club.
“But what he’s said since he’s got in the team, if that were to be true, and Liverpool is the only team for him and he wants to be their captain, he wants to be a legend here… You don’t leave when you’ve just won the league title and you’ve got the opportunity to go win more trophies with your club.
Trent Alexander-Arnold was booed on his return to Anfield with Real Madrid.
“And then you join a club who’s beat you twice in a Champions League final and they’re the club you want to compete for to maybe win more Champions League finals.
“So, I totally understand the reaction of the supporters. And a lot of it is because they feel like they have been hoodwinked a little bit by Trent throughout the process of him being at the club.
“And also in the last year, where he hasn’t done any media interviews, he’s not got involved in anything where there was talk around obviously him, Salah and Van Dijk.
“[Mohamed] Salah and [Virgil] Van Dijk were coming out constantly in the press saying they wanted to stay.
“Trent was very silent on the issue – and so that’s where the frustration comes for the supporters.”
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