Trent Alexander-Arnold 'in disbelief' before making 'child-like' gesture in damning Brighton footage
The right-back will depart Merseyside at the end of the season following a 20-year association with his boyhood side and is expected to join Real Madrid this summer. The 26-year-old, who will bow out as a two-time Premier League winner, was on the receiving end of boos from Reds fans during a recent 2-2 draw with Arsenal at Anfield.
These jeers were condemned by Kop hero Jamie Carragher on Sky Sports, while club icon John Aldridge also admitted he felt "uneasy" with the reaction of Alexander-Arnold's detractors. Following on from this incident earlier in the month, the full-back was an unused substitute against Brighton as it remains to be seen whether he has played his last game for Liverpool.
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Following the end of the game, Alexander-Arnold approached the away end at the Amex Stadium, as Reds supporters continued to hail their heroes long after the final whistle. While his teammates basked in the adulation from the travelling Kopites, the defender's muted reaction to the celebratory scenes on the terraces did not go unnoticed on social media.
Now, body language expert Judi James has given her reflections on Alexander-Arnold's reaction as fans appeared to be in no mood to allow his departure to overshadow the club's achievements this term. She was particularly struck firstly by the apparent apathy from supporters towards his presence on the pitch after the match.
She said: "Trent's decision to quit Liverpool was like announcing a divorce from a long-term marriage to a childhood sweetheart, so he should hardly be surprised if the fans are keen to turn their backs and move on without him now.
"He stands here watching them celebrate without him with his body language suggesting confusion and dejection," James contends. "When he reassured the fans he'd be back to visit regularly he might have assumed they'd wish him well with his new 'relationship' with another club, but as he turns here his eye expression seems to give away his feelings of surprise and pain."
As for his body language as he turns away from the away end and towards the tunnel before staring longingly into space, she continued by explaining that this reaction was telling: "His eyes widen in surprise and shock before he performs some emphatic blinks in a cut-off ritual that hints at disbelief.
"He ends with an act of auto-attack, biting at his nails as he walks away," she asserted, before adding: "This could be a childlike gesture of self-comfort, although nail-biting can also be prompted by frustrated anger when someone turns angry feelings on themself.'
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Commenting previously on Alexander-Arnold's much-publicized announcement video as he revealed his intentions to leave the club he supported as a boy, James said: This sounds and looks almost like a divorce video, as though Trent is a husband announcing a break-up and moving out of a long-term love affair but hoping there will be no bitterness for the sake of the kids,"
"There are signals of regret and even being slightly overwhelmed by emotion at one point. When he says the club is 'all I've ever known' there is a subtle change of state, and a hint of confused or mixed emotions as one eyebrow lifts in the middle while the other drops and he shakes his head from side to side.
She added: "Then his brows rise into a steeple while his eyes narrow and his tongue pokes from his mouth in a suggestion of rejection.
"There is a pause when he seems to be battling his emotions, letting out a sigh and closing his eyes as though inwardly battling with tears. When he thanks everyone for their support he scrunches his shoulders in a gesture of vulnerability. At any moment you expect him to add 'It's not you, it's me'.
"His expression becomes slightly more intense and fiercer as he gains some energy as he lets the fans know 'I'll be back' with an air of determination and intent."
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