£30m Trent Alexander-Arnold replacement suffers Brazil HORROR show

Liverpool look to now be planning for life without Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Transfer rumours concerning the right-back have grown in intensity over the last few days with it now seemingly inevitable that he moves to Real Madrid on a Bosman at the end of the season.

Liverpool Transfer News: World-class star is coming as Reds WIN Real Madrid battle

Plans are afoot under sporting director Richard Hughes and head coach Arne Slot for succession plans in Trent’s position.

And while Conor Bradley has got the capabilities to play right-back for Liverpool in the years to come, the Northern Ireland international has a patchy injury record and will require cover and competition.

READ MORE: Martim Fernandes: The PERFECT Trent Alexander-Arnold replacement

That leads to transfer links with several potential arrivals in the shape of Jeremie Frimpong, Lutsharel Geertruida and Vanderson, among others.

Liverpool linked with £30m Wesley

But perhaps the biggest rumour for Liverpool’s prospective new right-back concerns Wesley Franca. The Flamengo man has grown in prominence since making his debut in 2023, being linked with Barcelona, Zenit, Atalanta as well as the Reds.

It’s been reported that Liverpool may sanction a £30 million deal for the 21-year-old next summer, who is set to feature for his club in the upcoming FIFA Club World Cup.

READ MORE: Five right-backs READY to replace Trent Alexander-Arnold at Liverpool

But had Liverpool been paying attention then they would have seen Wesley endure a TORTUOUS outing on his first-ever Brazil start on Tuesday night.

The Selecao suffered their heaviest-ever CONMEBOL World Cup qualification defeat, going down 4-1 to Argentina in Buenos Aires.

The recriminations are stretching far and wide, with coach Dorival Junior destined to lose his job and talk focussing on rebuilding the entire Brazilian football structure before the World Cup.

Wesley "an avenue" in Brazil defeat

Quite aside from all of that however was the performance of Wesley in his second-ever Brazil game. The full-back was “an avenue” according to fierce criticism on social media, with Argentina’s midfielders and attackers enjoying the ample space in front of Wesley in order to create chances.

He was directly involved in at least two of the world champions’ goals and could have done better on several other chances. This game was a wake-up call for potentially interested clubs - Liverpool included - that Wesley may not be quite ready for football at the highest level.

“He was unable to repeat his good performance from his debut against Colombia,” wrote Globe Esporte in their player ratings, giving him a 4.0.

“He had difficulty marking and was practically absent from the attack.”

Should Liverpool sign Wesley?

SofaScore, meanwhile, offered Wesley a 6.0 rating - the worst mark for ANY player on the entire pitch.

And the stats show he offered nothing of note. In a defensive sense, no clearances, no blocks, no interceptions. There were only three tackles and he was dribbled past once.

He won only four of seven of his ground duels, committed two fouls and lost possession eight times. From an attacking perspective, he completed zero key passes and did not put in even one cross.

READ MORE: £60m Liverpool target given GREEN light after impressive performance

Perhaps Liverpool would be wise to pay attention to this fixture and consider more experienced and better-proven players to replace Trent.