Kevin Phillips has backed either one of Joe Gomez or James Milner to be sound deputies for Trent Alexander-Arnold whilst the fullback remains on the sidelines with injury.
The right-back was ruled out of the club’s FA Cup win over Nottingham Forest and travelling with the England squad after picking up a hamstring concern.
“It would be a big blow to lose him for the remainder of the season. Trent is so creative and he causes so many problems with his deliveries,” the former golden boot-winner told Football Insider.
“Would it destabilise their title bid? I don’t think it would, personally. The likes of Joe Gomez and James Milner have shown that they can do a job in there. They have so much experience.
“It is not ideal but I think they would be fine even if Trent is out for a while.”
Despite initial fears that the No.66 could be ruled out for Liverpool’s upcoming crunch league meeting with Manchester City in April, it would appear that the expectation is for the 23-year-old to be back in action for the first leg of our Champions League meeting with Benfica.
Having our Academy graduate available for selection against Pep Guardiola’s side would be a huge boost for our chances of turning the tide in the title race and supercharging our hopes of a historic quadruple.
That being said, the solid performance of Gomez in the cup – not to mention the prior outings of our vice-skipper in the backline – was a positive sign for us should we need to call on his services after the international break.
#Ep41 of The Empire of the Kop Podcast: The Champions League QF Draw… and more!