Trent Alexander-Arnold is set to complete his move to Real Madrid on June 1. The England international will be eligible to participate in the Club World Cup after the Spanish giants agreed to pay a fee of $11.3 million to secure his services one month ahead of schedule.
Alexander-Arnold had previously agreed to join Madrid upon the expiration of his contract at Anfield. However, under that arrangement, he would not have been able to officially sign for his new club until July 1, by which time the summer tournament in the United States would be well underway. To avoid this, Madrid engaged Liverpool in discussions earlier this month and successfully negotiated a substantial fee to bring their new right-back into the squad in time for the upcoming competition.
This sale represents a significant achievement for Liverpool, who had long resigned themselves to losing the services of the England international. Despite the Spanish club initially proposing a fee under $1 million, Liverpool ultimately received an amount exceeding half of the bid they themselves had rejected from Madrid for Alexander-Arnold back in December. This early departure also means Liverpool will save a month`s worth of the player`s wages.
Liverpool is reportedly planning to replace Alexander-Arnold with Jeremie Frimpong, who is expected to arrive from Bayer Leverkusen in a deal worth $40 million. The club is also showing interest in Frimpong`s teammate Florian Wirtz, as well as Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez.
Meanwhile, Alexander-Arnold`s arrival will bolster Madrid`s defense. He will be joined by Dean Huijsen, who is also set to arrive from Bournemouth on June 1. Both new signings will have just over two weeks to integrate and familiarize themselves with their new teammates before Madrid`s campaign is scheduled to kick off against Al-Hilal on June 18.
