Wayne Rooney tells Liverpool fans if booing Alexander-Arnold against Real Madrid was right – ‘A little clap around’ | OneFootball

Former Manchester United and Everton star Wayne Rooney has given his take on whether or not Liverpool fans were right to jeer Trent Alexander-Arnold following his return to Anfield as a Real Madrid player last week.

Alexander-Arnold turned down the chance to extend his stay at Liverpool and joined Madrid at the end of last season. The defending Premier League champions tried until the end to convince the England international right-back to put pen to paper, but Alexander-Arnold’s mind was already made up to move to the 36-time LaLiga and 15-time Champions League winners.

It hurt Liverpool fans a lot because Alexander-Arnold came through the academy and supported the club, and there was no surprise that the 27-year-old got a frosty reception from the Anfield faithful.

Liverpool fans booed Alexander-Arnold during warm-up and every time the Real Madrid defender took a touch of the ball after he came on as a substitute for Arda Guler in the 81st minute, as Arne Slot’s side won the Champions League game 1-0.

Former Manchester United and Everton star Rooney has been the subject of a few jeers himself from opposition fans during his illustrious career, and he believes that the Liverpool supporters were right to do what they did during the match.

The former England international, though, would have loved Alexander-Arnold to acknowledge the Liverpool fans after the match.

Rooney said on The Overlap: “At the end of the day, listen, it’s football, and I think players move on, players stay.

“In time, I am sure when Trent comes back in time, the fans will remember what he has done and how successful he has been for the club, but at the minute, it’s still quite raw.

“So, I was expecting him to get booed. I think, during the game, do what you want to put him off – that’s fine.

“I think, I just think at the end, it might have been nice if he had gone and just had a little clap around and maybe gets a few claps, but it’s football.

Carragher sums up Liverpool fans’ feelings about Alexander-Arnold

It is hard to envisage Liverpool fans applauding Alexander-Arnold at the end of the game at Anfield if he went to them, regardless of what Rooney says.

Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher summed up the Anfield faithful’s attitude towards Alexander-Arnold perfectly on CBS Sports Golazo after he was booed by them during warm-up.

Carragher said, as quoted in Football Espana: “The fans decide what kind of reaction he gets. The reason it was bad is because Trent, during his 20 years as a ‘red’, played the role of ‘I’m a fan on the pitch’.

“The fans in the stadium would not go for free to play for Real Madrid. Okay, it’s his career and he only has one. He’s young and he’s had brilliant success.

“But if what he’s said since he joined the Liverpool team was true, that it’s the only team for him and that he wants to be captain and become a legend here, then you don’t leave when you’ve just won the league title and you have the opportunity to go and win more trophies with your club.

“Are you joining a club that has beaten you in two Champions League finals and is the club you want to compete with to win more titles? I fully understand the reaction of the fans.

“A lot of this is because they feel that Trent has deceived us a little bit throughout the process that he’s been at the club and also in the last year, where he hasn’t given any media interviews or said anything.

“There was a lot of talk about Salah and Van Dijk, who constantly declared to the press that they wanted to stay. Trent was silent on the subject, and that’s where the frustration of the fans comes from.”

Alexander-Arnold’s career at Madrid has yet to take off, with the defender struggling with a hamstring injury and finding it hard to get into the starting line-up when fit and available.

The former Liverpool right-back has made two starts in LaLiga and one start in the Champions League for Los Blancos so far this season.

Latest Liverpool transfer news: New contract, Konate counter-claims

Meanwhile, Liverpool are aiming to convince a defender to sign a new contract and extend his stay at Anfield, despite signing a new player in his position in the summer of 2025.

Counter-claims have emerged in the Real Madrid media about Ibrahima Konate’s future, after a French report revealed that Liverpool have offered the France international central defender a new deal.