Trent Alexander-Arnold apparently hated playing with Bobby Adekanye at Liverpool (Image: Getty)
academy director has described how ‘probably hated’ one of his team-mates ‘with a passion’ after their competitive battles reached boiling point.
Alex Inglethorpe, who has been a long-serving member of the Reds’ famed academy after joining in 2012, oversaw Alexander-Arnold’s progression through the youth ranks to the first team.
The right-back broke into the senior squad under in 2016 and has gone on to make nearly 350 appearances in all competitions, winning the , Champions League and other major trophies at Anfield.
Part of what helped the 26-year-old rise to the top is his confidence on the ball and technical ability. But in the academy, Inglethorpe claimed that his team-mate Bobby Adekanye’s high level of self-belief got under his skin.
“Trent had a really good sparring partner in a young lad called Bobby Adekanye, who’s gone on to have a really good career in Holland,” Inglethorpe said during an appearance on the High Performance podcast.
“But Bobby was really confident in his own ability… really super confident. Every day he would tell Trent what he was going to do, and you could see Trent hated it with a passion.
“He probably hated him [Adekanye] with a passion, at the time. It was competitive, it was real, and I think if you’re sparring or rehearsing, you need that.”
Adekanye, 25, opted to leave to join Lazio in 2019 on a free transfer and now plays in the Eredivisie with Go Ahead Eagles after signing with the Dutch club in 2022.
Bobby Adekanye spent his youth career at Liverpool before leaving in 2019 (Image: Getty)
As for Alexander-Arnold, he has gone to become one of the world’s most creative defenders – although the England international has faced a barrage of negative comments surrounding his perceived defensive frailties.
admitted he didn’t have his “best game” in the 2-2 draw with on Sunday, in which most of United’s attacks came down Alexander-Arnold’s side of the pitch.
While Inglethorpe admitted that some of the criticism has been justified, he has been quite “protective” over Alexander-Arnold and praised the defender’s reaction to criticism.
“I think some of it, a lot of it was unfair but some of it was fair maybe,” he added.
Liverpool academy director Alex Inglethorpe defended Trent Alexander-Arnold from criticism (Image: YouTube/High Performance podcast)
“What I was most impressed with was his reaction to it, because it would’ve been the first time he’s had that, it’s been a seamless ride up until that moment.
He added: “This would’ve been the first significant bump in the road he’s had in his professional career. Sometimes you learn more about yourself and how to deal with adversity when you’re faced with those challenges.
“I don’t think he hid away, he confronted it head on and in typical Trent fashion, he decided the only way to put it right is probably on the pitch.
“I thought he adapted to a new position, new role, he faced up to it and didn’t hide behind excuses. I think he just kept his head down and proved a big point with his feet.”