Alyson Rudd admitted she was ‘surprised’ by Jurgen Klopp’s decision to keep Trent Alexander-Arnold on the pitch despite appearing to be fortunate to avoid a red card in the first half of action against Newcastle.
The Scouse Academy graduate was nonetheless an inspired presence during the 2-1 win over the Magpies – particularly after Virgil van Dijk’s sending-off precipitated an exchange of the armband – with the fullback’s body language an interesting point of conversation.
“It was interesting watching how Newcastle knew something was happening… they didn’t know to respond to that, even though they have a very raucous home support and there was a heightened tension, an atmosphere, that really goes against most visitors at St. James’ Park,” the Times journalist spoke on LFCTV’s Press Box show.
“They couldn’t handle that sense of ‘Liverpool are going to do something’. I felt that even though Liverpool hadn’t started well, there was something there, mainly exhibited in the body language of Trent [Alexander-Arnold].
“I was surprised he stayed on the pitch, because he was one tiny, tiny little wrong movement away from getting sent-off. Yet Klopp left him on for that sense of ‘lets make this right’.”
Two late, clinical efforts from Darwin Nunez were enough to turn the game on its head and break the home support’s hearts once again at St. James’ Park.
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The result leaves Liverpool fourth in the Premier League table, joint on points with last season’s second-place finisher in Arsenal, along with West Ham and Tottenham.
With the game on a knife’s edge, Trent’s show of resiliency and calm amid the brewing storm is most certainly a point worth devoting some discussion to.
It’s a highly promising sign of leadership from the club’s vice-captain at a time when we’ll likely need the defender to step up in our No.4’s absence – an extended absence too, it seems, if the FA get its way.
Keep that up and there’ll be absolutely no arguments over the rightful heir to the armband when the time comes for Van Dijk to hang up his boots.
#Ep88 of The Empire of the Kop Podcast: EOTK Insider with Neil Jones🎙️