Liverpool journalist James Pearce has been shedding some light on the ‘friendly rivalry’ between Reds duo Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold.
This comes after the journalist recently made an appearance on The Athletic’s Liverpool-themed podcast The Red Agenda where he spoke about a range of topics concerning the Merseyside club.
On the topic of the competitive rivalry between the two full-backs, Pearce had this to say on the matter.
He said: “It’s a very friendly rivalry. They’re very good mates, close off the pitch as well as on it, but they drive each other on. It’s always a topic of debate in the dressing room and around the training ground and both of their numbers are just absolutely ridiculous, aren’t they?”
As a product of the club’s youth academy, Alexander-Arnold made his senior debut for Liverpool back in October 2016. Since then, the Englishman has made 150 appearances for the club across all competitions in which he has managed to score eight goals and provide 39 assists (per Transfermarkt).
For Robertson, he joined the Reds back in 2017 from Hull City for a fee of £8.1 million and has since gone on to make 148 appearances for the club in which he has scored five goals and provided 35 assists.
Who is more important to Liverpool?
Andy Robertson
Trent Alexander-Arnold
TIF Thoughts on James Pearce’s comments on the rivalry between Robertson and Alexander-Arnold…
Given how both Alexander-Arnold and Robertson have racked up a phenomenal number of goals and assists between them, this shows that their rivalry and efforts to push each other forward seem to be paying off.
As well as Pearce, Liverpool defender Joel Matip recently spoke about the friendly rivalry between the two full-backs and claimed that it makes them both “better that they always compare themselves to each other.”
With only Kevin De Bruyne making more assists than Robertson and Alexander-Arnold in the Premier League last season, this shows that they are both vital components in Jurgen Klopp’s team.