Privately, there were few real surprised reactions at Liverpool when it became clear Trent Alexander-Arnold would be leaving on a free transfer at the end of his contract. The previous year, with the player's mind genuinely uncertain at the time, there had been hope that an agreement could be found over a new deal that would have made him one of the highest paid in club history.
But as the months rolled on without a resolution, an acceptance started to gradually develop that Real Madrid, as they so often tend to, would eventually get their man. This, after all, is the club who snared Kylian Mbappe on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain; the team who lured Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United; and the European giant who, 25 years ago, convinced Luis Figo to complete one of the most controversial transfers of all time when he jumped ship from loathed rivals Barcelona.
It was in March of 2024 when the prospect of a move to Real Madrid as a free agent started to become a real consideration by those outside of Alexander-Arnold's inner circle. The ECHO was told about how a move to the Spanish capital might appeal to a character as fiercely ambitious as he is about his own career.
The idea to cultivate Alexander-Arnold into an instantly recognisable figure beyond the parameters of football had long since been in overdrive. After an initial plan to grace the cover of iconic fashion publication Vogue was hatched in 2020, he then appeared on the front pages of GQ and the Sunday Times' Style magazines. In the summer of 2024, the West Derby native was enlisted as the face of designer brand Guess, featuring on billboards in Amsterdam, Milan and Madrid.
From a branding point of view, the timing of his boot deal with Adidas, announced less than 24 hours after scoring a crucial equaliser at Manchester City in 2023, couldn't have been better. His appearance on the Google Pixel advertisement as a representative of the England national team, despite an indifferent international career, is further indication of that wider determination to create a superstar.
And if furthering his celebrity is one of the end-games behind the decision that was confirmed on Bank Holiday Monday, then there are few clubs who can propel you in that direction with more velocity than Real Madrid. Alexander-Arnold is a keen Formula One fan and has been a regular in the paddocks at Silverstone, Spain and Monaco GPs. He is now a co-owner of the Alpine team, along with his brother and agent Tyler, and the pair were part of a star-studded consortium which acquired a 24% stake in the team in a €200m deal back in the summer of 2023.
