Danny Murphy was left in awe of one ‘beautiful’ Liverpool player’s performance in their 2-0 win over Arsenal in the FA Cup on Sunday evening.
A Jakub Kiwior own goal and a stoppage time Luis Diaz strike took the Reds into the fourth round of the competition and made it two wins out of two at the start of 2024.
The opener stemmed from a fizzing Trent Alexander-Arnold free kick from the left flank, and speaking on BBC One (7 January, 17:23), the former Anfield midfielder was waxing lyrical over the 25-year-old’s performance.
Murphy gushed: “He has been Liverpool’s best player. His passing, he is just beautiful with his passing, and this is the impact, this is the impact that he has now in games more.
“Nearly every game you watch Liverpool play, nearly every game he plays now, Trent, he is impacting the game positively and productively.”
This was indeed another game which shows Trent’s maturity as a footballer since being named Liverpool’s vice-captain last summer. As skipper today in Virgil van Dijk’s absence, the 25-year-old led by example.
As per Sofascore, he took 73 touches, completed 43 of his 55 passes (78% success) – including two key passes and five accurate long balls – won six of his nine duels and made three clearances, three tackles and two blocks.
In addition to his telling free kick delivery for Kiwior’s own goal, the Reds’ number 66 almost gave his team the lead just before half-time with a thunderous shot which cannoned off the crossbar.
On an evening when Liverpool’s resilience and match-winning quality came to the fore, Trent produced yet another big performance to help his team maintain the possibility of a four-trophy season.
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