Peter Schmeichel labelled Liverpool fans’ reaction towards Trent Alexander-Arnold “disgusting” after the full-back was booed on his return to Anfield.
Alexander-Arnold’s departure this summer riled many Liverpool supporters after he let his contract run down in order to depart his boyhood club and join Real Madrid.
The word "rat" was repeatedly daubed over a mural celebrating Alexander-Arnold, located near Liverpool's stadium. The vandalism was removed before Liverpool hosted Madrid on Tuesday evening, but fans vented their anger when he came on as a late substitute in the match.
Despite winning two Premier League titles and the Champions League in a trophy-laden decade at the club, fans jeered the academy graduate toward the end of last season — prompting former manager Jurgen Klopp to say "I couldn't have been more disappointed."
Months have passed, but the hostility remains. Alexander-Arnold had to contend with more abuse inside the stadium with some fans chanting obscenities as he warmed up in the second half. The 27-year-old came on to the field late in the game and was roundly booed by large sections of the crowd every time he touched the ball.
Liverpool won the game 1-0 thanks to Alexis Mac Allister’s header, while Alexander-Arnold’s successor, Conor Bradley, impressed at right-back against Vinicius Jr.
Speaking as a pundit on CBS, Schmeichel was unimpressed with the Anfield crowd’s treatment of the academy graduate, who he described as a Liverpool “hero”.
“I find it a little bit annoying, disgusting in a way, that this is even an issue,” Schmeichel said. “This is somebody who has given so many years, nearly 20 years, for Liverpool Football Club. He’s won every trophy that they have played for in his time. He should be welcomed back as a hero.”
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher disagreed with Schmeichel, saying fans feel “hoodwinked” by Alexander-Arnold.
“I think the supporters decide what type of reception he gets … Trent throughout those 20 years has played the position of ‘I’m a supporter on the pitch’, so them supporters who are all in this stadium wouldn’t leave on a free transfer to go play for Real Madrid.
“Now, OK, it’s his career, he gets one career, he’s a young man, he’s been brilliantly successful at the club.
“But what he’s said since he’s got in the team, if that were to be true and that Liverpool is the only team for him, he wants to be the captain, he wants to be a legend here, you don’t leave when you’ve just won the league title and you’ve got the opportunity to go win more trophies with your club. And then you join a club that’s beaten you twice in a Champions League final, and they’re the club that you want to compete for to maybe win more Champions League finals.
“So, I totally understand the reaction of the supporters and a lot of it is because they feel like they’ve been hoodwinked a little bit by Trent throughout the process of him being at the club.”
