Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold has been seen enjoying some downtime with Jude Bellingham amid rumours of Real Madrid's interest in the Reds' star.
Alexander-Arnold is in the last year of his contract at Anfield , and there's no news yet of a renewal. While Liverpool would undoubtedly want to retain him , they might have to fend off competition from Madrid.
The Spanish giants are assembling a new team of Galacticos, with Bellingham joining last summer and Kylian Mbappe making the move this year. After an impressive debut season, Bellingham was named Spain's player of the year.
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Bellingham and Alexander-Arnold have become good friends during their time with England at Euro 2024. Now, with some extra time off granted by their clubs, they've met up in the United States.
A picture has surfaced showing Alexander-Arnold and Bellingham partying in Los Angeles. It's unclear if Bellingham has been trying to persuade the Liverpool player to consider a move to the Bernabeu.
As per the Liverpool Echo , Anfield bosses are eager to keep the right-back. However, Madrid are on the prowl , with Alexander-Arnold eligible to sign a pre-contract agreement with the Spanish club in January for a transfer next summer.
With his contract situation still unresolved, speculation about Alexander-Arnold's future is bound to intensify. This comes as Liverpool undergoes significant changes following Jurgen Klopp's departure.
Arne Slot has taken the reins as manager, with Richard Hughes stepping into the role of sporting director. One of their immediate tasks is to secure the future of vice-captain Alexander-Arnold, but Hughes isn't losing sleep over it.
"Clearly, the more time we spend with the current squad which we're both (himself and Arne Slot) delighted to have inherited, it's a very talented squad. We need to improve and we need to improve on the training pitch, first and foremost," he expressed earlier this month.
"With the window open we will always be opportunistic if we can, if we can improve certain areas as we go we will look to do that. Contractual situations, I don't think it would be fair for me to talk about. These are private matters between club and players.
"The only concern I have, that Arne has, about those situations and everyone else in the squad is that there is total commitment from the players to the cause for next season and we are absolutely convinced that is the case."
Liverpool.com says: Hands off Jude! Hopefully this is nothing more than two good friends just enjoying their time off, although we all know Alexander-Arnold and Jordan Henderson did their best to talk Bellingham into a move to Liverpool at the World Cup in Qatar.
It wouldn't be a surprise then if the topic of Real Madrid comes up then. Hopefully Alexander-Arnold isn't swayed, and he can come back to a new contract waiting for him back on Merseyside soon.
* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can read the original story in the Mirror by clicking here .
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