'Remarkable': Gary Neville says Liverpool have a top talent in their ranks who's 'improved enormously'

01/01/2025 01:15 AM

Liverpool have enjoyed a superb season so far, sitting top of the Premier League table and also leading the way in the Champions League standings.

Arne Slot has been a revelation for Liverpool since taking the reins at the club, carrying on the great work done by Jurgen Klopp at Anfield.

Plenty of Liverpool players have shown notable improvement, with the likes of Curtis Jones, Ryan Gravenberch and Luis Diaz all benefiting from Slot’s coaching.

Now, Gary Neville has sung the praises of a Reds player who has “improved enormously” over the past 12 months, naming him in his Premier League team of the season so far.

Gary Neville says Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold has ‘improved enormously’

The player in question is Trent Alexander-Arnold, who has been working hard with Slot to improve on the defensive side of his game.

Alexander-Arnold previously came under criticism for his defending skills at times, but there has been a notable improvement on this front.

“The more I watch Trent Alexander-Arnold, I think his defending’s improved a lot,” Neville said on Sky Sports.

“He’s got a better intensity to his defending, I’m not saying he’s perfect but I think he’s got a far better attitude towards his defending right now than I’ve seen previously.

“I think in these last 12 months he’s improved enormously and what he does on the ball I have to say is remarkable.”

Alexander-Arnold’s Liverpool future is uncertain, with the Reds rejecting an approach from Real Madrid for the defender ahead of the January transfer window opening.

What Alexander-Arnold has said about his defending

Back in September, Alexander-Arnold lifted the lid on the discussions he had with Slot over what he needed to do to improve his defensive skills.

“We talked about targets and aims and I said to [Slot] that I want to be the defender that no one wants to come up against in Europe,” Alexander-Arnold told Liverpool.com.

“We agreed that he will be harsh on me and every time anyone gets past me, he will call it out in meetings and say this can’t happen. We go through every game together and where he wants me to improve.

“From the Milan game, we had about 20 clips of what could have gone better. It’s really refreshing to have a manager who will help and guide and teach me how to be better as a player and I’m someone who wants to learn and strive to be the best ever.”