Alexander-Arnold addressed family, friends, and the media in fluent Spanish during his unveiling as a Real Madrid player which sparked controversy as Liverpool fans suggested that the fullback has been preparing for his move to La Liga for some time. The former Liverpool vice-captain gave his entire address in Spanish, revealing that it is 'a dream come true' to join the 15-time European champions which only rubbed salt in the wounds.
Speaking on on The Rest Is Football podcast, Shearer, Lineker, Micah Richards and Alex Aljoe all gave their opinions on the defender’s fluent Spanish that has made headlines over the past week. Aljoe, who speaks Spanish commented on how impressive it was.
“His Spanish was pretty good, wasn’t it boys?
“Quick mention for him by the way. That was genuinely very, very good Spanish. There was pressure on him there as well. He certainly didn’t look like he was reading it from some script. And even if he was reading it, his pronunciation was really good, wasn’t it?
“It was so good. I just want to defend him because I wrote on social media that I was really impressed and got so many comments below saying, ‘Oh he’s only been learning for the last five years.’
“But for him to stand up and speak in Spanish… Even speaking in English at one of those things is intimidating, Florentino Perez sat in front looking at you. But he was brilliant. It takes a lot to do that.”
Shearer defended the former Liverpool star however as he continues to receieve hate online.
“Even if he had been learning, so what?! Good for him if he was learning Spanish.”
Lineker then revealed that even if he was planning a move, it is his choice and his career path at the end of the day.
“Honestly, the way some people turned on him saying, ‘It just shows you he was probably learning for a year or two because he knew he was going.’
“Well, maybe he did have some kind of career plan. That’s okay! It’s his life. It’s his career. I was incredibly impressed. It takes a lot of effort, that.”
Alexander-Arnold admitted on the Madrid Youtube channel that conversations in Spanish are easy which will only spark debate even further about what his intentions were on Merseyside.
“The meetings and the tactical talks are all in Spanish so they take some getting used to. But in terms of day to day conversations, it’s easy.
“I have a decent base level of Spanish so I can hold a decent conversation with the lads and likewise they have a very good understanding of English so it’s easy to communicate.”