Arne Slot has responded to Trent Alexander-Arnold’s celebration after Liverpool defeated West Ham 5-0 in the Premier League.
The Reds extended their unbeaten streak across all competitions to 23 games with a dominant victory, featuring goals from five different players.
One of the scorers, Alexander-Arnold, added a deflected strike from 22 yards in the second half to make it 4-0, following earlier goals from Luis Diaz, Cody Gakpo, and Mohamed Salah.
Diogo Jota further sealed the win with a goal in injury time, leaving West Ham to endure another heavy loss at the London Stadium after their 5-2 defeat to Arsenal earlier in December.
Liverpool now lead the Premier League by eight points over second-placed Nottingham Forest, who have played one more game than Liverpool. Arsenal, with the same number of games as Liverpool, sit nine points behind in third and will face Brentford on New Year’s Day.
The only downside for Liverpool fans during the holiday period has been speculation regarding Trent Alexander-Arnold’s future, as he is set to become a free agent in the summer.
Reports from Spanish outlets Marca and AS claim that Alexander-Arnold has informed Liverpool of his desire to join Real Madrid next season, but the Liverpool Echo denies this. After scoring against West Ham, Alexander-Arnold responded to the rumors with a ‘talking’ gesture, seemingly addressing the media speculation.
When asked about Alexander-Arnold’s celebration after the match, Slot commented, “I don’t view it as negative at all. He scored a fantastic goal, and the way he celebrated speaks for itself. I don’t feel the need to say much more about it.
“I’m very happy with Trent, just as I am with Mo and Virgil [van Dijk]. For me, there’s no distinction. Maybe there’s some difference in the outside world, but I’m content with all three.
“There will be more talk about it, not just about these three, but also about other players. January is always a month where transfers happen.
“It won’t just be about those three, but also about potential players we might bring in or others who could leave. It’s always the case with both the summer and January transfer windows.”
