In the course of their conversation on Trent Alexander-Arnold’s possible transfer to Real Madrid, Liverpool veteran John Barnes completely demolished Michael Owen.
During Liverpool’s 1-0 victory over Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on Sunday (April 20), Barnes, who is 61 years old, and Owen, who is 45 years old, were both members of the live broadcast crew for Premier League Productions.
Alexander-Arnold, who is 26 years old, scored the game-winning goal with a left-footed half volley before throwing his jersey in a display of sheer excitement. The debate quickly shifted to Alexander-Arnold, and it was not long before it became the topic of discussion.
As a matter of fact, the right-back has been strongly connected with a move to Real Madrid, which would take place in June, when his current contract would expire.
He was directly asked by a Sky Sports reporter about whether he was leaving Liverpool this summer, to which the 26-year-old replied: “Look, obviously, like I’ve said all season, I am not going to speak on my situation, I am not going to go into details but these days like today are always special: scoring goals, winning games, being close to winning titles and being in title races, they are special moments that will live for me forever. I am quite happy to be a member of them.
Barnes, a former player for Liverpool who won the First Division twice, and Owen, a former player for both Real and Liverpool, both shared their perspectives on the development of the scenario.
“Well… well, there was an opportunity for a Liverpool player to go to Real Madrid and wear the white shirt, but he didn’t take advantage of it,” Barnes poked fun at the situation. Therefore, there are those of us who are able to reject it.
Barnes, who is now 61 years old, was said to be interested in a transfer to Los Blancos during the late 1980s, when Welshman John Toshack was managing the La Liga club. However, the transaction did not go through, and Barnes continued to play for Liverpool until 1997, when he moved on to play for Newcastle United.
Owen, on the other hand, was awarded the Ballon d’Or in the year 2001. Three years later, in 2004, he signed a contract with Real Madrid that was for around eight million pounds and included the then-Madrid midfielder Antonio Nunez.
In an interview with the ECHO that took place in December 2024, Owen disclosed that he was willing to provide Alexander-Arnold some advice.
Owen asked, “Would you be interested in having a conversation with me?” Obviously, if he made an effort to get in touch with me, then yes. I talk to a large number of people on a regular basis.
“Because I work on television, I am always conducting interviews with real people. Covering games requires me to be in and around locations as well as television studios. People are continually asking me for guidance and other things like that, and I am always conversing with them. Obviously, I would answer the phone if Trent were to call me.
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