(Reuters) - Liverpool's 2-1 defeat at Manchester United last season proved to be a turning point in Trent Alexander-Arnold's fledgling career as it gave him the opportunity to learn from his mistakes, the Merseyside club's right back said.
United forward Marcus Rashford had got the better of Alexander-Arnold twice in 24 minutes to give the Old Trafford side a 2-0 lead and the young defender, then 19, was singled out for his part in conceding the two goals.
"I still use it as a learning point... To look back on the harder games that you have had, the tougher games, learn what I didn't do well and what I could have done better," Alexander-Arnold told reporters ahead of Sunday's visit to United.
"The Manchester United game was definitely one of those games. Rather than let it... put me down and think maybe I am not good enough at this level, it was important to use it as a positive and see it as a learning step to get better."
"I needed to use it as motivation to make sure something like that doesn't happen again and to prove that you are better than you showed on that day."
Alexander-Arnold said he discussed his mistakes with manager Juergen Klopp and his coaches from Liverpool's academy in the days after the defeat which helped him get through a trying time in his career.
"They just guided me through the tough time around that game. It is something that has helped me learn, progress and move forward," Alexander-Arnold added.
"I would probably say it was the hardest point of my career up to then. Obviously the Champions League final (where Real Madrid beat Liverpool 3-1 in May) came after, which was tougher than that."
(Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
