Liverpool fans’ abuse hurts me – Alexander-Arnold

Trent Alexander-Arnold has said he still hopes for “a degree of understanding” from Liverpool fans after revealing he continues to receive abuse 14 months after leaving Anfield for Real Madrid.

The 27-year-old, who endured a disrupted first season in Spain and missed out on England’s World Cup squad, told the Mirror that the reaction to his departure from the club he supports “hurts”.

He watches every Liverpool game and insists his boyhood club will always have a “place in my heart”.

“The booing and disappointment from Liverpool supporters is something I’m absolutely able to shoulder. I can understand it, in my own way,” he said.

“But I hope one day there’ll be a degree of understanding about the decisions I wanted to make around my own life.

“It hurts because of how much I’ve put into the club over the course of 20 years and the sacrifices I made for the club during that period.”

Despite being booed on his return to Anfield during Real Madrid’s 1-0 Champions League defeat in November, Alexander-Arnold said he is able to “dissociate” the abuse that night and online from the interactions he has with fans when he returns to Merseyside to visit family.

“Not a single interaction I’ve had in person reflects the sort of stuff you get online or via social media,” he said.

Alexander-Arnold, who featured in 35 of Real Madrid’s 62 matches across all competitions last season, described online abuse as a “sad part of life” in 2026, adding that some messages have “crossed the line”.

“I choose to keep those things away from me because they don’t feel real,” he said.

“I can rationalise that by knowing it’s not representative of a football club I love, LFC, and it’s not representative of my home city.

“This isn’t me saying everyone in Liverpool is fine with me leaving the club – of course they aren’t. But that’s very different from the stuff that goes beyond the football.”

Alexander-Arnold revealed he went into the summer without making any plans, hopeful that Thomas Tuchel would take him to the World Cup. However, when the phone rang at his home in Madrid, it was not the news he had wished for.

“I’ll be honest, I was full of hope,” he said.

“When I put the phone down, I was properly gutted.

“I hope the coaching staff would expect and understand that I was angry.”

The last of Alexander-Arnold’s 34 caps came as a substitute during a 1-0 win over Andorra in June 2025.

“He [Tuchel] wants players who are desperate to play for England. I am one of those,” he insisted.

Alexander-Arnold watched England throughout the World Cup and said his determination to return to the international stage has not been diminished.

“Until I retire, I’m still an England player, whether I’m selected or not,” he said.

“I’m always available if and when the manager needs me. There’s no bigger honour.”

He said he will turn his disappointment into a “positive” for the new season.

“I want to use it as fuel to get back into England squads and then back in an England shirt. That’s an aim of mine and I hope to achieve it,” he said.