Jurgen Klopp admits he “didn’t understand” Gareth Southgate’s decision to leave Trent Alexander-Arnold out of England’s latest squad.
The Liverpool defender was dropped for the recent World Cup qualifiers against San Marino, Albania and Poland, with Southgate suggesting the 22-year-old’s club form had fallen short of its usual standards this season.
With England winning all three games, Southgate will have felt vindicated in his decision, although he attracted criticism from the likes of Steven Gerrard, Robbie Fowler, Peter Crouch and Ian Wright for his reluctance to find a place for Alexander-Arnold, the current PFA Young Player of the Year and one of the stand-out full-backs in world football over the past three seasons.