Liverpool coach Pep Lijnders has given an interesting interview in which he discussed, among other things, working with Trent Alexander-Arnold in the club’s youth team a few years ago.
It’s easy to forget that the talented Reds right-back is still only 21 years of age, as he’s been such a key part of Jurgen Klopp’s side for the last few years and become regarded as one of the finest full-backs in the world.
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Alexander-Arnold rose through Liverpool’s academy, and Lijnders got the chance to work closely with him in his previous role at Anfield as Under-16s coach.
Speaking with The Athletic, he explained that he first noticed a huge improvement in Alexander-Arnold during the 2014/15 season, with the England international always eager to do as much extra work on the training ground as possible.
“Trent developed as a guy incredibly that season,” Lijnders said.
“He was my captain and our No 6 with only three players behind him in a three-diamond-three so he had to do everything well. You have leaders by talking, but Trent was a leader very naturally.
“After sessions, Trent and I would stay out there for another 20 minutes doing some skills until the lights went out. Trent would always be like ‘again, again’.”
LFC fans will no doubt love hearing these old anecdotes, as it makes it so obvious how Alexander-Arnold was able to maximise his potential and become such a world class performer for the European Champions.