{"id":295416,"date":"2023-11-16T22:38:53","date_gmt":"2023-11-16T22:38:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/?p=295416"},"modified":"2023-11-16T22:38:53","modified_gmt":"2023-11-16T22:38:53","slug":"england-star-trent-alexander-arnold-sends-southgate-clear-selection-message","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/soccer\/england-star-trent-alexander-arnold-sends-southgate-clear-selection-message\/","title":{"rendered":"England star Trent Alexander-Arnold sends Southgate clear selection message"},"content":{"rendered":"

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There has been a discernible change in Trent Alexander-Arnold of late as an England player – and not just in his position. It is more than five years since one of Liverpool\u2019s brightest lights made his international debut but it is only now, recast as a midfielder rather than as a back-up full-back, that he feels his moment is arriving.<\/p>\n

He is in the starting team on Friday against Malta at Wembley as a man on a mission for a similar role with England in Germany next summer. \u201cI see an opportunity for me to go and play in the Euros and represent my country and it\u2019s an opportunity I want to go and take,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery game for me between now and the end of the season and any time I\u2019m performing, it\u2019s to earn a place to start in the Euros. There\u2019s a chance for me to go and do that. That is where my head is at when I\u2019m turning up to camp. It is full focus to go and achieve that.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to start those games at the Euros and be someone who can help win silverware for the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

The switch flick moment came when Gareth Southgate called him over the summer – ahead of the away trip to Malta – and told him he wanted to use him as a midfielder going forwards.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I heard those words, it ignited something within me. There was a chance for me to go out there and take it and I think that\u2019s what I did,\u201d he said. \u201cI would say the Malta game was my best performance in an England shirt. Hopefully I\u2019ll be able to build on that.\u201d<\/p>\n

READ MORE: <\/strong> Scotland trying to get in-form England star to swap sides after Southgate snub[LATEST] <\/strong><\/p>\n

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A repeat of the long-range strike in Valletta in June on Friday would be just the job as he tries to shape Southgate\u2019s thinking in the countdown towards the finals.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve played roughly around 20 games for England. If I remember back to my first 20 games for Liverpool, I wasn\u2019t a regular starter but I wasn\u2019t someone who rested on my laurels and was content, I always strived for more,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see myself in a similar position. I\u2019ve had some opportunities, I\u2019ve had games, I\u2019ve had minutes. But now I feel like there\u2019s a real opportunity for me, especially in a role that I think will get the best out of me.\u201d<\/p>\n

The position that suits him best? That is an interesting take given Alexander-Arnold is still a full-back – albeit a hybrid one – for his club.<\/p>\n

It is not that he no longer cares for full-back duties at Anfield but he feels his game fits the creative opportunities offered higher up the pitch.<\/p>\n