With Trent Alexander-Arnold joining Real Madrid and rookie Milos Kerkez threaten the position of Andy Robertson, one of the best Bien Bien defenders in the Premier League history officially disintegrated.
How great Trent and Robbo are?
Next season, Jeremie Frimpong, a new contract from Bayer Leverkusen, almost firmly the right defender, while Kerkez, just signed a contract from Bournemouth, keep the left wing. Robertson is rumored to leave Anfield, with Atletico Madrid a potential destination. Even when staying, his role will certainly fade than before.
An official era closed. No one knows what is waiting ahead. But one thing for sure is that Frimpong and Kerkez, or anyone else kicked in the position of the wing in Anfield in the following years, will have to make great efforts and expression to be able to approach the influence that Alexander-Arnold and Robertson have created. Asymptotic, overcome is something that may not be utterly.
The question is How great Trent and Robbo (nickname of Robertson) are?
Numbers do not lie. In Liverpool shirt, Trent and Robbo have played 279 matches together, Means an average of 35 matches per season for 8 years of attachment. Robertson is from Hull City for only £ 8 million in the 2017/18 season, and Trent is a product of the Liverpool Academy, launched from the previous season. Except for Mohamed Salah, no one played many matches with Alexander-Arnold and Robertson than that.
In those 279 matches, they won 185 matches, lost only 43 matches. This means that the win rate of Liverpool when both of the squad is up to 66%, a very impressive figure.
In Jurgen Klopp's gegenpressing philosophy, the two not only perform defensive tasks but also an extremely dangerous attack drill. Considering each person alone, their number of assists is too terrible. But the amazing thing is that both of them can do that … in the same period.
In Premier League history, only 10 times a defender reached 10 assists/season, Yet Trent and Robbo have been able to do 3 times each. At the peak season of 2019/20, they worked together up to 25 assists for Liverpool. In terms of the total number of defenders in the Premier League history, they ranked No. 1 and 2 of all time, of which Trent has 64 assists, and Robbo is 60. Even if counting all positions on the pitch since the 2017/18 season, only Kevin De Bruyne, Mohamed Salah and Son Heung-min to create more than them.
Regarding the ability to create opportunities, they ranked second and third in Premier League history as a defender (Opta started statistics from 2003/04). Trent has 516 times creating opportunities, while this figure in Robbo is 446. The only person who surpasses them is Leighton Baines (635 chances). But remember that Baines played 420 matches in 14 years of playing in the Premier League, and Robbo has only played 308 matches, Trent even played less matches, only 251 matches.
Not only are the assists, they are also an irreplaceable pillar in the most successful period of Liverpool since the 1980s. Besides the two Premier League champions, they also won the Champions League together, the FA Cup and the two League Cups. It is clear that in terms of personal capacity, collective title, as well as the good, Trent and Robbo deserve to be considered one of the best -back couples in the Premier League history. Even football history in general.
Who is better than them?
Historically, many border defender couples have been famous in the way Trent and Robbo have done in Liverpool. The most famous is the pair Roberto Carlos and Cafu of the Brazilian team. This is the symbolic wings of Selecao during the 1990s and 200. They took the throne together in the 2002 Word Cup, and also won Copa America twice. Different from Trent and Robbo is Carlos and Cafu only have a short time playing football together at a club (Palmeiras in 1995), the rest is mainly in the team shirt. Although the number is not small (91 times), it is clear that the continuity cannot be equal.
Another couple is Paolo Maldini and Mauro Tassotti, It is likened to the “immortal wings” of AC Milan in the period 1980-1990. They along with Franco Baresi and Alessandro Costacurta created the legendary defense, an obsession for every striker. In the Milan shirt, Maldini and Tassotti have 328 appearances together, winning 5 Serie A, 3 Champions League, and prominently has a series of 58 unbeaten matches in Serie A from 1991 to 1993.
The Premier League has also witnessed a pair of defenders that stormed for a long time, is the pair Denis Irwin and Gary Neville of Man United. The two had 231 appearances together from 1994 to 2002, of course, under the guidance of Sir Alex Ferguson. The outstanding achievements of Irwin and Neville are winning 5 Premier League, winning the Champions League in 1999 and many other big and small titles.
If considering the number of Champions League titles, the Marcelo and Dani Carvajal of Real Madrid is “unmatched”. In the period from 2014 to 2022, they played 209 matches together in white shirt, contributing greatly to the dominance of Los Blancos in the Champions League with 5 championships. In addition, they also won 3 La Liga championships together and a series of other big and small titles.
In terms of influence on how to play, the ability to support attacks, and the importance in the golden period of the club, the pair of Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson are completely deserved in the top of the greatest border defenders in the world.
💬 In your opinion, what are they ranked on this list? Comment to share your opinion!
