Chris Waddle is concerned by Gareth Southgate’s decision to play Trent Alexander-Arnold in midfield.
The Liverpool right-sided defender has been tried through the middle before, often successfully, but he is part of a midfield pair for the national team and he - along with the rest of his team-mates - have not been at their best at Euro 2024 in Germany.
Waddle, speaking to Genting Casino, has spoke on the situation.
He said: “Trent Alexander-Arnold is playing as part of a midfield two, and I don’t understand why Gareth Southgate has made that decision. Trent has tremendous passing range, and playing for Liverpool, we’ve seen him hit those lovely balls from right back or when he’s stepped into the midfield. The difference is he has willing runners that stretch the play.
"Mo Salah, Darwin, Diaz, they will run all day for him. At England, there are no runners, so his greatest strength – his passing range – in that midfield role is completely wasted. He’s playing it simple because he has too – all these England players in front of him, except for Saka sometimes, want the ball to feet.
“Trent’s a wonderful player, but his best attribute is being wasted in this midfield role for England. If we’re going to play Trent in midfield, then Southgate needs to get more runners into his team. We need a player with the mindset to think ‘when Trent’s on the ball, I'm going to run behind my full back because he’ll find me’,” he said.
He added: “Trent’s not being used in the right way. It’s not fair for Trent to be made into a scapegoat – the overall team performance wasn’t good enough. If you’re looking at individuals, there were several players that were worse than Trent Alexander-Arnold in both of England’s games so far and he’s been the guy that’s been hooked first.
"Except for Marc Guehi, who is doing well considering his lack of experience, everyone has been below average. All our players are playing below par, so Southgate should have criticised the group, not an individual.”
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