'MARAUDING' Liverpool star will force Arne Slot's hand over contract rebel

Trent Alexander-Arnold is one of Liverpool’s most important players but he could also leave the club at the end of this season.

The fact that Liverpool have allowed their homegrown star’s contract situation to get to this point is a result of poor planning - we shouldn’t be here.

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But here we are, in a place where the player who has reinvented a position and completed football at the club could sign a pre-contract agreement with a foreign club in as little as six weeks.

Luckily, Arne Slot has a more than capable deputy waiting in the wings to step up in the event of Trent leaving.

Conor Bradley burst onto the scene in January of this year with a number of eye-catching performances that came during Trent’s absence with injury. He was named man of the match against Chelsea after scoring a goal and getting two assists, and hasn’t looked back.

Since then, Bradley has become an established member of Liverpool’s first-team squad, and has set high standards with his performances.

And now he’s getting even more plaudits for his role in Northern Ireland’s win over Belarus in the Nations League this week.

Conor Bradley steps up

It can be easy to forget that Bradley is just 21 years old. His performances on the pitch for Liverpool have been mature and controlled, and he's been trusted to replace Trent whenever necessary.

He was recently named Northern Ireland captain for their games in the October international break - another sign that the young right-back is a leader on and off the pitch.

While he wasn't captain for this week's win over Belarus, Bradley still took the opportunity to effect the game wherever he could, and was praised by national media for his performance.

“Positioned in a rangy, attacking right wing back role, the Liverpool ace drove forward well to try and stretch the ‘White Wings’ in different areas of the pitch,” said The Belfast Telegraph, who rated his performance an 8 out of 10. “A standing ovation from the Green and White Army at the climax. Tireless.”

BelfastLive were similarly positive, saying Bradley “helped set the tempo with his marauding runs forward,” and rating him at 7 out of 10.

Slot: Bradley will find his way

Slot's rotation policy with his fullbacks means that Bradley has had plenty of opportunities off the bench for Liverpool this season. He's featured in seven of the Reds' 11 Premier League games so far, and is likely to start against Southampton after the international break due to Trent's hamstring injury.

In October, Slot was asked about Bradley's strong showings for Northern Ireland, and said: “I think it’s going to be a bright future for him because he’s a very good player and very good players [are] what we need here at Liverpool.

“He’s done, last season especially, really well when he had to replace Trent, and now Trent has played a lot.

“But he is a very good player and, although he has big competition from Trent, normally very good players find their way into the team. That’s what I also expect with him in the future at this club.”

The question for Slot now becomes: At what point do you start to pick Bradley in the starting lineup over Trent? The club's vice-captain has played well so far this season amidst all the contract speculation, but if he is to leave the club at the end of the year it would only be natural for his performances to dip slightly. If he informs the club in January that he won't be signing a new deal, Slot could decide to cut his losses and start bedding Bradley in as first-choice.

Bradley will know that there is an opportunity for him now at Liverpool to show Slot and his teammates that losing Trent wouldn't be the disaster it's made out to be - and even if Trent does stay, he'll be in for some strong competition for his place in the team.

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