Sunderland star mooted as option for Liverpool to replace Trent Alexander-Arnold | OneFootball

Analytics have showed that Trai Hume could be an ideal replacement for Real Madrid-bound Alexander-Arnold...

Sunderland right-back Trai Hume has been tipped as a potential replacement for outgoing Liverpool star Trent Alexander-Arnold.

In what was at some point an expected announcement given the months and months of speculation, England international Alexander-Arnold confirmed over the bank holiday weekend that he would be leaving his boyhood club this summer when his contract expires, with a move to Real Madrid expected to follow.

Alexander-Arnold's departure will leave a massive hole to fill for Liverpool, and it's one that perhaps cannot be filled by just Conor Bradley who is already in position at Anfield, so they will need to go into the transfer market to find a replacement - could Bradley's fellow countryman in the form of Hume be the answer?

Sunderland defender Trai Hume tipped as potential Trent Alexander-Arnold successor for Liverpool

As per a report from the iPaper, Sunderland defender Northern Ireland international Hume has cropped up in an analytics-based search in regards to players who play like Alexander-Arnold and post up similar numbers.

They hired Analytics FC to scour the data, and Hume was the best domestic-based option that they could find, although he was not the strongest overall.

Celta Vigo full-back Oscar Mingueza topped the rankings of the analytics, with other overseas options including Carlos Sanchez of Pachua, Porto teenager Martim Fernandes and Brazilian full-back Vanderson from Monaco.

Hume however is one that has come from virtually nothing and turned into one of the Championship's top full-backs, having been signed by Sunderland when they were in League One in 2022 from Linfield for just £150,000.

He will be a part of Sunderland's play-off double header this coming week against Coventry City in the semi-finals, and it could be somewhat of a shop window moment for the 23-year-old, with Wolves also linked this week.

Liverpool may be a step too far right now for Sunderland's Trai Hume

Since arriving on Wearside, Hume has played 129 times for the Black Cats, scoring six times and providing nine assists, which on average is a goal contribution every 8.6 matches - not on Alexander-Arnold's level of one in every 3.1 matches for Liverpool, with 23 goals and 92 assists in 352 games.

But as an all-round right-back, 23-year-old Hume is still developing, and it's only going to be sooner rather than later before he will be a Premier League player.

Liverpool however, as champions of England and who will also have high Champions League hopes for next season, could prove to be somewhat too big of a leap for Hume at this current moment in time.