February 2016, and Trent Alexander-Arnold was unable to come to terms with what was happening.
Time and again, Liverpool’s right back was left behind by far-flung Brandon Barker when Manchester City claimed a 3-0 victory at Anfield.
Alexander-Arnold, then just 17, was making his first appearance for what was then the Under-21 team after taking the plunge from the U18. It was an experience of punishment.
“It was one of the first times I played as a right back,” the defender said, later reflecting on the afternoon. “I hadn’t played there very often.
“That’s probably one of the hardest games I’ve ever had. It brings back bad memories, but it’s those kinds of games that help you learn. They’re not the good ones, they’re the bad ones.”
The day before, Andy Robertson, 21, was dealing with his own disappointment at being part of a Hull City team that, while the best in the Championship, fell 1-0 at Burnley.
Fast forward 18 months, and the pair first came out together for Liverpool in the Premier League.
Alexander-Arnold, who proved himself a quick learner, made his full league debut at Old Trafford in January 2017, while Robertson had impressed enough at Hull to earn a £ 8m transfer to Anfield in the summer.
But his departure against Burnley in September was one of four Premier League appearances in the same starting lineup during the first half of the season, and one of them, at Brighton and Hove Albion, saw the duo employed as wingers.
While Robertson’s long adaptation period is well known, it is easily forgotten that Alexander-Arnold was challenging Joe Gomez for the right-back position.
It wasn’t until February that he started three consecutive league games, at which point Robertson, thanks initially to an injury by Alberto Moreno, settled in as the regular left back.
They have not looked back since then, perhaps the best full attack pairing in world football.
In the 27 Premier League games they performed together last season, they had 22 assists. This term is 20 out of 29 games.
Still only 21 years old, Alexander-Arnold has become not only an integral part of the team, but also a prominent ambassador for the club, a role model for prospects and fans of the Academy as a whole.
Also, of course, he is the Scouser in the Liverpool team that has dominated Europe, the world and now, finally, English champions.
He has also redefined the role of the right back, essentially becoming the Reds’ game creator from the post.
The pinnacle appeared on display in a 4-0 win at Leicester City on Boxing Day, when he claimed two assists before sealing the victory with a Carlos Albertoesque arrow ending in the bottom corner.
Players from the past and present, usually good enough to spot a talent, couldn’t help but be impressed.
“Alexander-Arnold” tweeted former Liverpool midfielder Javier Mascherano, while Gary Lineker stated: “It’s just a joke. Fantastic footballer.”
(Image: PA)
Anyone who had even been giving a cursory warning to the Liverpool Academy in the years leading up to the Alexander-Arnold advance would not have been surprised by its impact.
And in hindsight, it should have been blindingly obvious that Robertson would also become a huge success at the club.
With the infectious enthusiasm of Joey Jones and the progressive play of Steve Nicol and Alan Kennedy, Robertson is an amalgam of popular left-handed title winners with the Reds.
Oh, and he’s Scottish.
North Border influence has prevailed in all successful Liverpool championship offerings, so much so that in the late 1970s and early 1980s photographers routinely ordered “Jock Pictures” in which Alan Hansen, Kenny Dalglish and Graeme Souness paraded the latest cutlery won. Steve Nicol, Gary Gillespie and John Wark would also get involved later.
Gary McAllister was at the center of the tripled cup in 2001 and Charlie Adam could claim a League Cup in 2012, but otherwise Scottish representation has been sparse on the ground since the 1990 title win.
Now Robertson has restored balance. “He has been the best left back in England and, perhaps, in Europe for the past two years,” said Danny Rose, who was part of the Tottenham Hotspur team defeated by Liverpool in the Champions League final last year.
“He’s the one I’m looking to catch, no doubt. He is the best. Andy Robertson seems like a phenomenon of nature. He is just brilliant. “
The last word, however, should go to Jurgen Klopp, whose focus on the game, faith in youth, and the eye for a gamer have allowed the duo to thrive so magnificently.
“Not many young children want to say they want to be advocates, but now they are much more important,” said the Reds chief.
“The game has changed now and you have to be really strong defensively, but now the teams are clearing the wings for the wings, you have to have the quality of football to put crosses at the other end as well.”
Alexander-Arnold and Robertson have not only changed Liverpool. They have altered perceptions about the role of the full standard carrier model for a new era.
And of course they are Premier League champions.
.
