Trent Alexander-Arnold tipped for surprise new role at Real Madrid

European football expert Andy Brassell has suggested that Jose Mourinho could utilise Trent Alexander-Arnold as a holding midfielder for Real Madrid.

The ‘Special One’ returned to the Bernabeu dugout after a 13-year absence and is tasked with restoring Los Blancos to trophy-winning ways after two consecutive campaigns without silverware.

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Mourinho won La Liga in 2011/12 in Madrid, but has only won one title since he left the Spanish giants, which was the Premier League during his second stint with Chelsea.

The Portuguese manager has been backed by the club’s hierarchy with their biggest summer spend since 2019 in order to have two star players in every position.

This summer included the signing of Denzel Dumfries from Inter Milan on a four-year deal for €20million (£17m).

The full-back helped Inter win the Serie A title twice and the Coppa Italia three times after joining the club from PSV in 2021.

The Netherlands defender was signed as competition for Alexander-Arnold after the ex-Liverpool player enjoyed a mixed debut campaign, making 35 appearances last term for Los Blancos.

Despite missing three months through injury, he was still able to provide seven assists from defence.

Mourinho has used the right-back in his usual position throughout pre-season.

However, Dumfries was then chosen ahead of him for their 2-1 win over Espanyol on Saturday.

Brassell believes that if he’s forced out of the starting lineup by Dumfries, he could instead be utilised in midfield.

Madrid missed out on the signing of Rodri to arch rivals Barcelona, who signed the Ballon d’Or winner from Man City for £65.4m.

Brassell said: “Trent Alexander-Arnold didn’t start [against Espanyol]. Now, of course, there’s been speculation that he might be used as that holding midfielder that they didn’t get with Rodri.

“He’s not going to be the same as Rodri if he plays in midfield, but it’s clear that they need an organiser at the base of the midfield going forward.

“Whether that’s Aurelien Tchouameni or whether they’re looking for someone who’s primarily an on-the-ball sort of player, we’ll have to wait and see.”

Dumfries vs Alexander-Arnold

The England international featured for just ten minutes off the bench in Real Madrid‘s 2-1 victory over Espanyol, replacing Dumfries.

However, Mourinho became visibly frustrated during his brief appearance when Alexander-Arnold attempted to switch play to Vinicius Junior but he misplaced the pass and sent it straight out of play.

Brassell added: “I think when we’re looking at the comparison between Denzel Dumfries, who was obviously one of the first signings for Jose, and Trent Alexander-Arnold, two very adventurous right backs but two very different types of right backs.

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“Because Trent has this kind of Beckham-like quality. He sees the pass really early and he gives the pass really early.

“With Dumfries, you’ve seen so much of him at Inter, he’s basically a wing back. He’s someone who likes to go round the back and round the back and round the back. We saw loads of that in the first half at Espanyol.”

Alexander-Arnold is no stranger to the centre of the pitch, having been deployed in midfield by former England manager Gareth Southgate during his tenure, notably starting there throughout Euro 2024.