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Paul Scholes believes a lack of faith in their title potential could be Trent Alexander-Arnold's main reason for leaving Liverpool(Image: Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

The prospect of Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold joining Real Madrid this summer could spell bad news on several fronts, and Manchester United legend Paul Scholes has highlighted one particularly troubling implication behind the rumoured move.

Alexander-Arnold, 26, seems likely to make the switch to the Bernabeu when his current deal with Liverpool expires at the end of this season.

While official confirmation hasn't yet come, his potential departure might also spark a domino effect, with Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk also in the last few months of their contracts.



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Reds fans can find solace in the likelihood that any player parting ways with the club will do so as a Premier League champion, with Liverpool comfortably leading the pack ahead of nearest challengers Arsenal in the race for the title.

Nonetheless, Scholes has pinpointed an alarming rationale for why Alexander-Arnold may wish to leave – a belief that Liverpool won't be able to sustain their success going forward.

"I try to imagine as if it was one of our players growing up," he said on The Overlap, brought to you by Sky Bet.

If you talk about the Manchester United team now, and somebody came in, then yeah, good luck, you deserve to go.

"I think Trent is possibly looking at Liverpool and thinking other than they're a really good team – they're gonna win the Premier League – it doesn't feel like it's going to be a dominant team for years to come."

Paul Scholes has spoken about Trent Alexander-Arnold's situation at Liverpool(Image: YouTube/@TheOverlap )

Reds' boss Arne Slot will no doubt pull out all the stops to quash such notions, yet it's understandable why Scholes, who hung up his boots at Old Trafford as a one-club player, might hold such reservations.

With two more key players' contracts up in the air still, Liverpool could face significant gaps in their star-studded lineup if deals for Salah and Van Dijk aren't extended.

On the conundrum, Scholes continued (via the Liverpool Echo): "It still feels like there’s a few issues at Liverpool, obviously with Trent, Van Dijk and Mo Salah.

So I can understand him wanting to do it from that point of view."

Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk could potentially leave Liverpool at the end of the season(Image: Getty Images)

At least in the case of Alexander-Arnold, Slot has a ready-made replacement in Conor Bradley who has earned his own share of the spotlight.

The same perhaps can't be said in central defence or on the wing should Van Dijk and Salah pack up their own bags and depart, due to their importance in the team.

Having been conservative with transfers in his first summer, Slot is likely gearing up for a spending spree in the upcoming window.

Yet, replacing generational talents like Van Dijk and Salah is far from guaranteed, and certainly not a quick fix.

While a Premier League title in one's debut campaign is nothing to be sniffed at, Liverpool could well have landed a Treble in Slot's first season.
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