Trent Alexander-Arnold starts on the bench for Real Madrid upon his first return to boyhood club Liverpool.
Alexander-Arnold is fit again after spending a month on the side-lines with a hamstring injury sustained in Real Madrid’s win over Marseille in the first League Phase fixture of this season’s Champions League, but must settle for a place among the substitutes at Anfield - likely due to his recent lack of gametime.
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The 27-year-old’s chances of starting against his former club were boosted when, last week, it was announced that Dani Carvajal had been ruled out after undergoing knee surgery.
However, Alexander-Arnold is yet to feature for Real since returning to full fitness - an unused substitute in wins over Barcelona and Valencia - and has lost out to Federico Valverde in the battle to start at full-back.
The Uruguayan, naturally a midfielder, has been deputising at right-back recently with both Alexander-Arnold and Carvajal unavailable for selection, earning praise from Alonso in the process.
"We can all see how well-rounded he is and the level at which he's playing,” head coach Xabi Alonso said after the win over Valencia. “With the ball, he has the soul of a midfielder and is very powerful offensively.
“Since he started playing, his level has been increasing and we know that he is a complete player. Due to the needs of the team, he has played as a full-back and is still playing really well.”
David Alaba and Antonio Rudiger, as expected are absent through injury, which means Alonso names an unchanged back five - including goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois - for a third game in a row.
Real’s manager has also returned to the same midfield that started the El Clasico win over Barcelona last month, recalling Eduardo Camavinga alongside compatriot Aurelien Tchouameni and the in-form Jude Bellingham, who has scored in each of his last three appearances.
Arda Guler is takes the place of the injured Franco Mastantuono’s further forward with Vinicius Jr on the opposite flank after the Brazilian faced no further punishment for his reaction to be substituted against Barcelona.
Kylian Mbappe is always a guaranteed starter when fit, and the Frenchman leads the line again in an attempt to continue his red-hot form at the start of the season. Mbappe scored twice at the weekend to take his tally to 18 goals in Real Madrid colours.
Real Madrid XI: Courtois; Valverde, Militao, Huijsen, A. Carreras; Tchouameni, Camavinga; Arda Guler, Bellingham, Vinicius Jr; Mbappe
Subs: Lunin, Gonzalez, Endrick, Rodrygo, Alexander-Arnold, Gonzalo, Asencio, Ceballos, Garcia, Brahim, Mendy
Injured: Carvajal, Rudiger, Alaba, Mastantuono
Time and date: 8pm GMT on Tuesday, November 4, 2025
How to watch: Amazon Prime
Venue: Anfield
