During an interview with Sky Sports last October, Alexander-Arnold was asked about his remaining career goals and whether he would rather win another Champions League, become Liverpool captain, lift a trophy with England or win the Ballon d’Or. After a little bit of deliberation, he chose the latter.

“[I want to be] a legend of football, someone who changed the game,” he explained. “A saying I have is ‘Don’t play the game, change the game.’ I want that legacy of being probably the greatest right-back ever to play football, to be honest.

“It’s only the morning after you retire that you’re able to look at yourself in the mirror and say you’ve given it everything you have got. It doesn’t matter how many trophies you win or medals you have got. It matters what you have given to the game and if you reach your full potential. I’ve heard potential being thrown around with my name since the age of six. If you reach that potential and become the player you believe you can be, which is one of the best ever, then you’ll be happy. It doesn’t matter how many trophies you win, I guess.”

It was at that moment that it became abundantly clear that Alexander-Arnold was bound for Santiago Bernabeu. His focus had very clearly shifted from becoming a Liverpool legend to securing superstar status with Madrid.

• • Madrid’s obsession

    Madrid will certainly offer Alexander-Arnold a better shot at winning the Ballon d’Or than Liverpool. Los Blancos are the biggest and best club in the world; they’ve won more than twice as many European Cups as anyone else. Perhaps most importantly of all, though, they take the Ballon d’Or very seriously. Too seriously, in truth.

    Madrid were so incensed by Rodri claiming a narrow victory over Vinicius Jr in last year’s vote that they made the embarrassingly petty decision to boycott the ceremony, which not only demonstrated the Spanish side’s unrivalled sense of entitlement – but also underlined just how much undue importance they attach to a meaningless individual accolade within a team sport.

    However, it’s still extremely difficult to see Alexander-Arnold having any chance of actually being voted the best player in the world – even with the support of the incredibly powerful Florentino Perez. Just proving himself the best player at Madrid will be tough enough, as he’ll somehow have to outperform Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius for an entire year – from right-back.

    A defender’s not won the award for nearly two decades (Fabio Cannavaro in 2006), so even accounting for the greater importance of full-backs in the modern game, it would take a truly extraordinary campaign to even put Alexander-Arnold in the mix. Remember, the wonderfully consistent Dani Carvajal won both the Champions League and the European Championship last year – and that twin-triumph wasn’t enough to even earn the Spaniard a place on the podium.

    In that sense, Didi Hamann has a point when he says, “If winning the Ballon d’Or is the reason that he wants to join Real Madrid, he should forget it and stay at Liverpool!”

  • AFP

    Legacy tarnished

    In fairness to Alexander-Arnold, he’s acutely aware that most people will deem him “deluded” for believing he can win the Ballon d’Or, but that’s also kind of missing the point. In his mind, it’s not really about whether he lifts the trophy or not, it’s about putting himself in the best possible position to do so – and he feels moving to Madrid is key in that regard.

    It certainly won’t hurt his chances, of course, but the transfer will tarnish his Liverpool legacy. There’s just no getting away from that fact.

    Although attempts have already been made online to diminish or even erase Alexander-Arnold’s role in Liverpool’s success under Klopp, his key contribution will never be forgotten. He’ll forever be a part of Anfield lore for that quickly-taken corner alone.

    Klopp even considers the academy product the most significant addition made to his squad during his nine years in charge – which is some compliment, given Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, Sadio Mane, Fabinho and countless other great players were signed on the German’s watch.

    Goal