Trent Alexander-Arnold must be dropped: Jamie Carragher urges Arne Slot to bench Liverpool star for rest of season despite winner against Leicester

Alexander-Arnold sealed a crucial 1-0 win over Leicester City with a late strike that pushed Liverpool within touching distance of the Premier League title. Carragher insists the time has come to shift focus toward the future, particularly given that the 25-year-old defender is widely expected to leave Anfield this summer to join Spanish giants Real Madrid when his Liverpool contract expires in June.

Speaking on Sky Sports after the narrow victory at Leicester, Carragher admitted that replacing Alexander-Arnold’s unique skill set would be a tall order. However, he argued that the club's transition needs to begin now, with Conor Bradley given a chance to cement his place in the side.

"You can't replace him, because what he is..." he explained. "The reason we talk about him so much, I think why he's the most talked about full-back we've probably ever seen in the Premier League, is because he's unique, he's different. You've [Micah Richards] just mentioned about him defensively, now, most top full-backs don't get it thrown at them that they're not very good defensively. But he's so unique on the ball, I think I said four or five years ago, it's like having Kevin De Bruyne playing right-back, that's what it feels like in terms of his ability on the ball. He can come on and change games, so Liverpool aren't going to replace that.

"So Liverpool need to replace his creativity, they're not going to do that from right-back, they maybe need to that from an attacking midfield position, or maybe a left-wing position. So, the team has to evolve that way. Now, where they can replace him, is Conor Bradley's a right-back. Conor Bradley shouldn't look at Trent and think, 'I want to be like him.' He's got to be like Andy Robertson was when he was in his prime, a proper full-back, up and down, aggressive at the winger, maybe overlapping, getting crosses in, underlapping is what the Liverpool full-backs like to do.

"So you're not going to be able to replace him, so forget that, but the big decision Liverpool have, or a couple of decisions between now and the end of the season, and the summer is...If Trent hasn't committed, which he hasn't obviously, to the manager for next season, he shouldn't be starting games. He shouldn't be..."

Carragher’s strong stance drew a counterpoint from fellow pundit Micah Richards, who argued that Alexander-Arnold’s legacy at the club warranted a few more appearances before his departure.

"Liverpool are not here as a football club to give someone a send-off," he said. "I understand what you're saying in terms of you've got to prepare for next season, I totally get that point, I do. But for what he's done for the club throughout these years, been there since a little boy, they're going to win the league, just to give him a few more appearances to say: 'Well done.'

"No, it's not about that. The point would be, is in Conor Bradley you've got a young player. It's not like we're talking about a 27, 28-year-old, talking about a young player who had a tough 15, 20 minutes at the start of the game, and that's part of becoming an experienced player. I went through that in certain games, Gary [Neville], who's commentating, would have gone through situations like that. It's not about: 'Let's give Trent a send-off.' It's about: 'Okay, we need to assess whether Conor Bradley is the guy for us next season playing week in, week out.' Because the decision Liverpool will have in terms of Trent moving on is: 'Does Conor Bradley become our first-choice right-back and we buy a back-up player who's maybe a utility player, who can maybe play centre-back?'

"Or: 'Are we buying a first-choice right-back and Conor Bradley's going to have to battle with him?' So that lad needs as much experience as he possibly can get. So yes, bring him on as you did today if you need to go and win the game, maybe against Spurs or a couple of weeks after that. But in terms of starting games right now, if Trent hasn't committed to the club, which he obviously hasn't, Conor Bradley should be starting every game."

Despite the ongoing debate about who should start at right-back, the result against Leicester has put Liverpool on the brink of Premier League glory. With five games remaining, Arne Slot’s side are 13 points clear of Arsenal and need just three more points to be mathematically crowned champions. There’s a chance the title could be secured as early as Wednesday if Arsenal drop points at home against Crystal Palace. If not, the Reds could clinch the trophy in front of their home supporters next weekend when they face Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield.