Trent Alexander-Arnold receives Virgil van Dijk message after repeating feat

Trent Alexander-Arnold is without doubt one of the best players in the world. Well, Gareth Southgate had doubts about that while he was in charge of England, but you can’t please everybody.

Per Transfermarkt , the Liverpool man is the most valuable right-back in the game. He would be higher than joint-39 ^th in the overall standings if he wasn’t less than a year from the end of his contract too. Over to you, Richard Hughes .

Despite this standing in world football, Alexander-Arnold hasn’t had as many starts for England as you would expect for a player of his quality. Interim Three Lions manager Lee Carsley gave the 25-year-old two starts in his normal position in the Nations League and was rewarded with a pair of player of the match performances. His efforts earned praise from teammates at club and international level. It’s remarkable what a top footballer can do when given the chance, isn’t it, Gareth?

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It’s not easy to decide in which of the games Alexander-Arnold played better either. He made a more noticeable contribution in the second match, against Finland, assisting Harry Kane for the opener before delivering the pre-assist for the captain’s second.

But in the previous match against Republic of Ireland, Alexander-Arnold laid on a pair of Opta-defined clear-cut chances. The first of them, for Liverpool transfer target Anthony Gordon , ultimately led to the opening goal. It was little wonder that England supporters voted the Reds’ defender as player of the match for both games.

Alexander-Arnold was clearly delighted to receive the accolades. He posted a photo of himself holding his award for the match with Finland on his Instagram account, with the caption “2/2. A great week in camp," followed by a smiling emoji.

‘Again!’ was the verdict posted by fellow defender Ibrahima Konaté , while Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk said all he needed to with an applause emoji. Former Red goalkeeper coach John Achterberg went further than that by unleashing two flames, two applauses and a heart.

Praise wasn’t limited to colleagues from club football. Eberechi Eze dropped a comet emoji while Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka posted: ‘Player !’. It seems that everyone apart from Southgate can fully appreciate the supreme talent which England has at its disposal in the form of Alexander-Arnold.

Liverpool.com says: It is no surprise that Trent’s colleagues are pleased for him following his successful international break. He has rarely had it easy with England for various reasons. This last week could be the making of Alexander-Arnold at that level.