The Japan Times - Liverpool boss Slot fears replacing Alexander-Arnold will be a tough task

The England right-back, whose contract expires in June, announced on Monday he would be leaving Liverpool, a club he has been with since he was a young boy, with the 26-year-old saying it was "easily the hardest decision I've ever made in my life".

Alexander-Arnold's future has been the subject of intense speculation this season, with the defender widely tipped to join Spanish giants Real Madrid after helping Liverpool win this season's Premier League.

His exit leaves Liverpool short of cover in his position, with 21-year-old Conor Bradley, who has made 54 senior appearances, now their only recognised right-back.

"I think it would be a surprise if I were to tell you now ‘Yes, we we are looking at this and looking at that," Slot told a pre-match press conference ahead of Sunday's game at home to Arsenal, currently second in the Premier League.

"We don't talk about contracts here so we don't talk about the positions or if we want to improve the team in certain areas."

The Dutchman added: "That's the most difficult thing for a club like Liverpool if you just won the league is that it is not easy to find better players than we already have.

"And if they are there then they still need to be affordable and need to want to come.

"That last thing is mostly not a problem, by the way, but transfer fees sometimes are."

Slot confirmed Bradley will start Sunday’s match at home to Arsenal but insisted that was not a reaction to Alexander-Arnold's announcement as the Republic of Ireland international would have been in the team for Chelsea last weekend had he been fully fit.

- 'Not here to tell fans how to react' -

And while Alexander-Arnold's decision to end his 20-year association with Liverpool has provoked contrasting reactions among supporters and pundits, Slot said it was not his job to tell fans how they should feel about the situation.

Slot, in his first season at Anfield after replacing charismatic manager Jurgen Klopp, has yet to speak directly to Alexander-Arnold since the announcement, only communicating via WhatsApp. But he intends to hold face-to-face talks on Friday in order to gauge how the player is feeling about the fall-out from his decision.

"That people have an opinion about us, if it is Trent or me or someone else, is not new for anyone," said Slot.

"Probably it’s a bit more now for him than he is used to and probably a bit more negative but I don't follow all of this. I am not here to tell the fans how they should react.

"We are all disappointed but Trent is the first one also who he said he would prefer us as a team and a club not to be too much distracted by this announcement."

He added: "I am hoping all the energy on Sunday goes to the players and less as possible to Trent –- unless it is positive then they can do whatever they want.

"I worked at clubs like AZ Alkmaar and Feyenoord where every season a very good player or multiple very good players left the club so I am a bit more used to it.

"But the experience I have –- and by the way this club as well –- is that if a very good player is leaving the next very good player will step up and that probably will happen now."

K.Yoshida--JT