Robertson reveals truth behind Alexander-Arnold’s defensive criticism
by Moronfolu Adeyemi · The Eagle OnlineAndy Robertson has defended former Liverpool teammate Trent Alexander-Arnold against the criticism that followed the England international throughout his career.
Robertson, who now plays for Tottenham, believes Alexander-Arnold faced a different level of scrutiny because of his nationality and said Liverpool’s tactical setup also exposed the right-back defensively.
The pair formed Liverpool’s full-back partnership under Jurgen Klopp and helped the club win the Champions League in 2019 and the Premier League a year later.
While both provided significant attacking contributions, Robertson explained that their defensive responsibilities were not the same.
“It’s very different when you are English, compared to another nationality,” Robertson said.
“I always said to Trent, ‘I will never get as much high praise as you, but I’ll never get as much criticism as you.'”
Robertson said the tactical roles of Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah also affected the amount of defensive protection he and Alexander-Arnold received.
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“The way I defended at Liverpool compared to Trent was very different. I had Sadio helping me out and he was a bit more aggressive so if I missed [a tackle], he’d usually be there,” Robertson said.
“With Mo [Salah], we didn’t want him coming back towards our box. A lot of times, Trent was waiting on someone like [Jordan Henderson] to come over, so, sometimes, I started to feel sorry for him.”
Alexander-Arnold left Liverpool for Real Madrid in 2025, but Robertson believes the defensive criticism attached to the defender has been unfair.
The Scotland international pointed to Alexander-Arnold’s performances against some of Europe’s top attackers and in Champions League finals as evidence of his defensive ability.
“I’ve seen him lock out [Kylian] Mbappe at PSG. In the Champions League finals, he was unbelievable,” Robertson said.
“Trent is a very, very good defender… [in his] best games, he was an unbelievable one-v-one defender.”
Robertson acknowledged that Alexander-Arnold has made mistakes but argued that such errors should not define his defensive reputation.
“Now, at times, he maybe makes mistakes. But we all do,” he said.
“But it’s if [Trent] had this stigma around him, that he can’t defend. And he’s had that from a very early age. It’s as if he can’t shift it.”
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