Trent Alexander-Arnold may have been dropped from the England squad because of his lack of leadership skills, according to former Germany international Thomas Hitzlsperger.
England took on Germany on Monday in the UEFA Nations League at Wembley and the Liverpool right-back was dropped from Gareth Southgate's squad after playing no part of the 1-0 loss in Italy on Friday night.
Alexander-Arnold hasn't been in the best of form this season for Liverpool, but Southgate has never truly trusted the right-back even when he was at his glittering best.
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Hitzlsperger was pitch side talking with Jermaine Defoe about Southgate's decision to leave out Alexander-Arnold and still remain loyal to Manchester United's struggling captain Harry Maguire, who gave away a penalty that lead to Germany's opening goal while his mistake gave the Germans a 2-0 lead.
England fought back well from two goals down in the second half to lead 3-2, but a Nick Pope mistake allowed Kai Havertz to equalise as the match finished 3-3.
"You look at Harry Maguire and for me, when I listen to Gareth, he talks about leadership and he does that quite often and probably Harry Maguire is the type of personality you would want," said the ex-Everton player to Channel 4 before the game. "Maybe Trent Alexander-Arnold, not so much.
"He's great going forward, maybe not so much going backwards. He wants someone you can rely on and that's why he picks Harry Maguire and maybe doesn't like Trent Alexander-Arnold so much."
Defoe believes Alexander-Arnold is a "top player", but sympathised with Southgate who has the likes of Reece James, Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier to choose from.
"He's always impressed me. His range of passing is one of the best. It's a difficult one. The problem that Gareth's got is Reece James, Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier - the players in that position - then you've got Trent," added Defoe.
"There's been a lot said about him defensively, but at the same time, he's still a top player. It's harsh, but what can you do when you've got those players in that position? It's a tough one."
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