Frank Leboeuf has revealed that he received a number of death threats over his comments directed at Liverpool star Trent Alexander-Arnold back in September.
The former Chelsea defender criticised Alexander-Arnold for his performances this season and claimed that he is a "Championship defender". In an interview with Journal du Dimanche, Leboeuf slammed his defensive abilities but also stated he doesn't believe Jurgen Klopp's system is helping him, often leaving him exposed when focusing on attack.
Alexander-Arnold has emerged as one of English football's brightest young stars in recent years, winning every domestic trophy available with Liverpool since 2019. The 23-year-old has become known for his assists from out wide, but his defensive qualities have been questioned by some pundits and fans.
Leboeuf, who was capped 50 times for France, became the latest to criticise Alexander-Arnold, although he did praise the right-back in the process. He has now opened up on the backlash he received from some fans after his comments, claiming he even received death threats.
He told Fair Betting Sites : "TAA's computer says 'no i'm not interested in defending'. He doesn't even know what to do but what he can do is provide fantastic crosses or long range passes to the front line and because that's where his real quality lies.
"These comments I made about TAA being taken out of context have seen me labelled as a racist and I've also received death threats over social media and I hate that. It's totally unjustified because it was not a personal attack on TAA.
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"Yes, I criticised his defensive ability but as part of my analysis I also praised him highly. Even Rio Ferdinand would probably agree, but if he tried to tell me that Trent Alexander-Arnold is a great defender I'd really want to talk to him about that.
"But you have to look at the whole picture. In modern football a player in that position is, what do you need more from him? His passes or his defending? Klopp is playing him there in the right side as a fullback who needs to defend then all the teams Liverpool play against will target him, that's obvious."
Alexander-Arnold's shaky start to the season has coincided with Liverpool dropping points in seven of their 11 league outings this term - a record that has already left them with plenty of work to do when it comes to pursuing the Premier League title.
The right-back's questionable defensive record has also seen him leapfrogged in the England pecking order by Reece James, who has thrived for Chelsea over the past 12 months. Kyle Walker is also ahead of Alexander-Arnold, although the Man City man and James are both doubts for the World Cup.
