Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold stepped up to save the day for his side on Sunday with a terrific strike to beat Leicester City 1-0 at the King Power Stadium.
His second-half goal means that Arne Slot’s side are now only three points away from winning the Premier League title, which they could celebrate at Anfield against Tottenham Hotspur next Sunday.
As you can see in the highlights above, it was an emotionally charged celebration by the England international, who ripped his shirt off to passionately celebrate in front of the away supporters.
He is out of contract at the end of this season, with Real Madrid monitoring his situation, and refused to comment on his future when interviewed after the game.
One Liverpool player who has already committed his future to Anfield, however, is winger Mohamed Salah, who recently put pen to paper on a two-year contract extension.
Unfortunately, though, the former Chelsea and Roma forward’s performance against Leicester on Sunday was not one of his finest outings in red.
Mo Salah's struggles against Leicester
The Egypt international set the tone for what was to come in the opening minutes of the game when he found himself unmarked in the box and saw his low effort hit both posts and roll back out for a Leicester defender to make a clearance. It simply was not his day in front of goal.
Salah played the full 90 minutes against the Foxes and took seven shots on goal, six more after the initial effort that hit both posts, and failed to find the back of the net from any of them, only hitting the target once.
The left-footed magician missed four ”big chances’, more than any other player on the pitch, and will surely be gutted to have come off the pitch without a single goal to show for his efforts in the final third.
Minutes
90
xG
1.05
Shots
7
Shots on target
1
Big chances missed
4
Key passes
3
Big chances created
1
As you can see in the table above, Salah did create one ‘big chance’ for his teammates, though, which was not rewarded with an assist, as he was involved in plenty of actions – without success – in the Leicester box.
Salah has scored 27 goals and provided 18 assists in the Premier League so far this season, but this showing against the Foxes was a far cry from what supporters have seen from him throughout the rest of the year.
The Liverpool superstar was not the only player who underperformed in the 1-0 win over Leicester at the King Power, though, as Conor Bradley failed to take his chance to impress.
Conor Bradley's performance against Leicester
The Northern Ireland international was given the nod at right-back ahead of Alexander-Arnold, who is still coming back from injury and was not deemed ready to start.
Liverpool’s academy graduate played the opening 71 minutes of the game before being taken off for the English defender, who then went on to win the game for the Reds.
Bradley got off to the worst possible start early on in the game, just as Salah did with his miss, after he dawdled on the ball in his own box and was tackled by Wilfred Ndidi, who then failed to get a cross in before slipping out of play. That set the tone for the rest of what turned out to be a nervy showing.
Minutes
71
Tackles
0
Interceptions
0
Pass accuracy
79%
Big chances created
0
Duels won
6/14
Possession lost
17x
As you can see in the table above, the 21-year-old defender went on to lose the majority of his physical duels, whilst he also gave the ball away 17 times without creating any of the nine ‘big chances’ that Liverpool fashioned.
These statistics show that Bradley was just as bad as Salah due to his lack of quality on the ball and his weakness defensively, as both players underperformed on the right flank.
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FSG must, now, take note of this performance from the right-back because it proves that the board must spend millions on a new right-back if Alexander-Arnold does not put pen to paper on a contract extension.
Why FSG must sign a new right-back for Liverpool
The England international provided a timely reminder of the kind of quality that he can produce at his best. He is a full-back who has the ability to win a match on his day with his use of the ball as both a scorer and a creator at the top end of the pitch.
Liverpool will lose a huge attacking outlet in their squad if he moves on this summer as a free agent, and Bradley is yet to prove that he has what it takes to fill that void.
The young full-back’s lack of quality on the ball in the win over Leicester was just the latest sign that Liverpool must have plans for another right-back to come in and offer an attacking threat next season, should Alexander-Arnold move on.
Appearances
29
15
Goals
3
0
Big chances created
14
1
xA
6.72
0.58
Key passes per game
1.9
0.3
Assists
6
1
As you can see in the table above, the English dynamo offers significantly more than Bradley does with the ball at his feet, with 14 times as many ‘big chances’ created in the Premier League.
The Reds were linked with an interest in Bayer Leverkusen defender Jeremie Frimpong, who is valued at £34m, earlier this year, and the Dutch defender has scored 29 goals and provided 44 assists in 186 games for the German club.
He may have the kind of quality that Liverpool need to replace Alexander-Arnold with, due to his ability to score and assist goals from right-back, and that further proves that FSG will need to splash the cash and spend millions if they want to land a high-quality replacement for him.
It is now down to the board to spend the money required to bolster Slot’s squad if Alexander-Arnold decides to end his time at Anfield this summer.
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1 ByAngus Sinclair Apr 20, 2025
