Denmark vs England: Why Trent must continue alongside Rice in midfield
In the build-up to England’s Euro 2024 opener against Serbia, the role of Trent Alexander-Arnold dominated the pre-match discussions. Following his showing on Sunday night, he will once again be the topic of conversation going into the second group game on Thursday evening with Gareth Southgate’s side knowing a win over Denmark books their place in the knockout round.
Alexander-Arnold was deployed in a midfield pivot alongside Declan Rice. The Liverpool full-back got the nod ahead of the likes of Conor Gallagher, Adam Wharton and Kobbie Mainoo.
His performance wasn’t bad. It wasn’t great either, but the focus, as always with the British media, seems to be on the negatives. Alan Shearer, on co-commentary for the BBC, kept referencing the first-half error throughout the game.
The England No.8 failed to control a pass deep in his own half and he had his pocket picked. Serbia looked to make the most of the opportunity and Aleksandar Mitrovic fired an effort just wide of Jordan Pickford’s goal. The way people went on about it, you’d be forgiven for thinking the Liverpool right-back had given the former Fulham forward an open goal to shoot at.
But this was the sort of thing everyone was waiting for. Wayne Rooney, Phil Jagielka and Roy Keane had all questioned Alexander-Arnold’s suitability to a midfield role ahead of the summer tournament. It meant everyone was on the lookout for a mistake, an error or a lapse in concentration to talk about.
In reality, this could’ve happened to anyone. The ball sort of bobbled up as he went to control it and then he never managed to get it back on the ground properly before he was dispossessed. It had nothing to do with him being a full-back masquerading as a midfielder.
Yet, that is all anyone seems to be remembering from his 69 minutes against Serbia.
The fact he made the joint-most interceptions (2) of any player on the pitch seems to be going under the radar. He actually set up one of England’s best counter-attacking situations with his reading of the game. It was an opportunity that Kyle Walker should’ve done more with. He also picked Jude Bellingham out with a pass into the area but the match-winner failed to get a shot off despite being in a good position.
Alexander-Arnold also finished with a 100% tackle success rate. He also attempted the highest number of shots (3) while only Bellingham and Bukayo Saka attempted more dribbles.
All things considered, it was a fairly well-rounded showing, even if he did finish with the lowest WhoScored rating (6.41) of any England starter.
Afterwards, Southgate praised his off-the-ball work too, saying: "Good. I have to say he’s been really diligent in getting his positioning right. Obviously Jude goes forward a lot, so I thought Trent adapted and adjusted to his positioning really well. Used the ball well, obviously had a really good effort on goal. In the end, we wanted some fresh legs in there, Conor can get to the ball quickly. We’ve got a squad and we need to use it."
While Bellingham, speaking to ITV, praised his teammate: "Brilliant. He makes it so easy for me because he can control the game so well.
"Defensively I think in that position, I know people talk a lot of rubbish, but I think he was so aggressive with the back to goal pressure and it really helped me as well because it meant that I got a breather when he went out. I think we understand each other well with the ball. He wants to play positive all the time, he wants to play forward all the time. And I think we accept as teammates who have that kind of quality that we're going to lose the ball and that's fine. We'll win it back for each other and we'll keep playing. I thought he was brilliant."
If Southgate is going to persist with using Alexander-Arnold in midfield though, he’s going to have to figure out a way to get the 25-year-old more involved. Many in favour of using him in the middle third cite his ability to get on the ball and make things happen. Against Serbia though, his on-ball involvement was limited.
He attempted just 42 passes. Of the starting outfield players, only Harry Kane (12) and Saka (31) attempted fewer. For added context here, Walker finished with 77 attempted passes from his right-back role.
This hybrid role he’s been given might balance the team and allow Bellingham to put his stamp on things, but it means England aren’t going to see the brilliant best of Alexander-Arnold. Does it matter if they’re winning? Probably not. But it will certainly taint how these performances are viewed if he’s adopting a passive role, even if the team are benefitting from it.
