The plot was as obvious as it was understandable: isolate the kid, leave him exposed and let the world class flyers take him apart.
A few days earlier, Crystal Palace had enjoyed some success following that plan. Balls were switched from their right flank to the left, to let Wilfried Zaha run at Trent Alexander-Arnold. Liverpool’s right-back is high on talent but short on experience and there have been times when it has showed.
No wonder, then, Pep Guardiola saw an opportunity. His philosophy, in a basic nutshell, is to overload one side of the pitch, then – quickly and ruthlessly – change direction to leave Leroy Sane (or Raheem Sterling) one-on-one with their opponent, ready to wreak havoc.
Trent Alexander-Arrnold produced a memorable display for Liverpool against Manchester City
Alexander-Arnold, though, failed to ready the script. In his mind, the 19-year-old had a plan of his own, one he had plotted since the days when he used to stand outside Liverpool’s Melwood training ground, praying he’d get an autograph from Steven Gerrard or Fernando Torres, Jamie Carragher or Xabi Alonso.
He grew up ‘just around the corner’ from Melwood in West Derby, a young boy who attended nearby St Matthew’s primary school with stars in his eyes and dream of following in the footsteps of those players whose pictures he had plastered over his bedroom.
Now, today, he finds himself in the position of being a source of inspiration to the next generation coming through and beacon of pride to those who know what it means to see a local boy thriving in a Red shirt.
Do not underestimate the level of his performance in the first leg skewering of City, a result that has put Liverpool on the cusp of the Champions League semi-finals. He has had a shaky past month, going as far as apologising for the way he performed in the 2-1 defeat at Manchester United.
City had hoped getting Leroy Sane one-on-one with the defender would wreak havoc. It didn’t
Some wondered whether he would be able to cope with intensity of Sane surging at him at full throttle but Alexander-Arnold more than passed this test. This was the kind of performance that showed why, 12 months ago, Gerrard sagely predicted: “Trent is going to be a beauty”.
It was, if you will, a coming of age night. There have been a couple of highlights already in this Champions League campaign, including a superb free-kick in the first leg of the qualifier against Hoffenheim last August and a goal in the 7-0 demolition of Maribor in October.
But having the composure to quell one of the best players in the world – for that is what Sane, undoubtedly, is – and the strength of character to show the Germany international inside onto his weaker foot even in pressure moments was a mark of distinction.
This was why it never entered Klopp’s head to pick the more experienced Nathaniel Clyne when Joe Gomez was injured on international duty. He has the utmost faith in Alexander-Arnold and trusts him to make the necessary development to fulfil his talent.
He is a quiet young man, who is as thick-as-thieves with his best friend Ben Woodburn, but that should not mask the ferocity of his ambition to become a Liverpool regular, to show in this day and age with telephone number transfers that local boys can come good.
Alexander-Arnold had been given a tough time last Saturday by Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha
And herein lies the point: Alexander-Arnold is one of a group players who we should be hoping to see succeed, like Jesse Lingard and Rashford at Manchester United, Harry Kane at Tottenham, Tom Davies and few others at Everton. Local youngsters must remain the lifeblood of these clubs.
There is no doubting Alexander-Arnold is on the right path and you can see how much this all means. At the final whistle, as the stadium was a sea of twirling scarves, he stood by the Kenny Dalglish stand and pumped his fists, screaming with joy. There was no sense, however, the job was done.
‘You can never be comfortable because there is either someone to compete with or someone coming up to take your position,’ he said in an interview last May. ‘That’s always how it is going to be; someone trying to get your shirt. That’s how to look at it. You can never relax or be complacent.’
With an attitude like that, he will continue to go far.
Jurgen Klopp has the utmost faith in Alexander-Arnold and trusts him to fulfil his talent