Trent Alexander-Arnold breaks silence on Arne Slot half-time rant at Liverpool in uncommon interview

Trent Alexander-Arnold gave a post-match interview after Liverpool’s 3-1 win over Southampton at Anfield on Saturday, breaking his silence amid ongoing contract talks

Trent Alexander-Arnold admitted Liverpool manager Arne Slot was as furious as he’s ever seen him at half-time in their win against Southampton.

The Reds’ vice-captain has rarely given post-match interviews this season. His contract is set to expire at the end of the campaign and rumours are rife that he will join Real Madrid on a free transfer in the summer.

But he spoke after the Premier League leaders beat the bottom-ranked side Southampton at Anfield, despite finding themselves a goal down just before half-time, when Will Smallbone’s shot following a mix-up between Virgil van Dijk and Alisson Becker stunned the Kop.

Slot, serving the second of his two-match touchline ban, watched from the stands and appeared visibly upset with his team’s performance. He decided to make a bold move at half-time, replacing Kostas Tsimikas, Curtis Jones and Dominik Szoboszlai with Andy Robertson, Alexis Mac Allister and Harvey Elliott.

The substitutions had the intended impact, as Liverpool came back stronger after the break. Darwin Nunez equalised from close range, followed by two penalties from Mohamed Salah, securing a 3-1 victory for the Reds. This win extended Liverpool’s lead at the top of the table to 16 points, ahead of second-placed Arsenal‘s game against 14th-placed strugglers Manchester United on Sunday, reports the Mirror.

Alexander-Arnold spoke to LFCTV after Saturday’s game, stating that Slot was as fired up as he’s been all season during the break. He said: “Probably the most [angry] we have seen him so far, I guess it’s a good thing he’s not been too animated so far, but I think rightfully so.

“It wasn’t good enough, we deserved to be down, but we came out second half with a point to prove and did that really early on. As a team and individuals, you’d like to be very good every single game but it’s not possible.

“You are going to have days like this where you don’t play well, you’re not proud of the performance. It’s a day you look back on it and think yeah we got the three points, that’s the most important thing.”

The hard-fought win positions Liverpool favourably for their upcoming fixtures, including the Champions League last-16 second leg against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday and the Carabao Cup final against Newcastle next Sunday.

Alexander-Arnold underscored the significance of the victory: “You can’t downplay too much how important today’s win was, to go 16 clear at this stage of the season is huge and puts a lot of pressure on Arsenal.

“We’ve done our work in the league now until after the internationals, now we focus on the two other competitions.”