We’ve all seen the smiles and mutual affection when Jude Bellingham and Trent Alexander-Arnold are together.
The running joke within the England camp is that the pair are inseparable. They often sit next to each other at meal time or on the coach to games and if one is seen without the other, playful questions are asked about the absence of the missing half.
Tonight, however, the brotherly love stops. When Liverpool face Real Madrid in the Champions League at Anfield, Alexander-Arnold and Bellingham come up against each other for the first time, even if the defender will be starting the night on the bench after only just recovering from a hamstring injury.
The match is a marquee occasion that hardly needs sub-plots, but the individual battle between Alexander-Arnold and Bellingham is one of the most fascinating. There is the on-field tussle between two of England’s brightest talents, of course, but also their their shared ambition to become the best in the world and, perhaps most pointedly, the backdrop of Alexander-Arnold’s uncertain future.
The 26-year-old is out of contract this summer and, while talks are ongoing with the club, no breakthrough has been made. If that does not materialise, the club most likely to push for his signature will be Real Madrid, and no doubt his best friend in football, Bellingham, will have a part to play in that process.
Alexander-Arnold and Bellingham may be close, but that does not mean they are the same characters.
At Liverpool, Alexander-Arnold tends not to fit into one particular clique: as a part of the club’s leadership group, he tends to straddle social groups, being close to Andy Robertson — who called him “one of the closest friends I’ve got in the dressing room” at yesterday’s pre-match press conference — and Virgil van Dijk, in particular. Before his departure last summer, Jordan Henderson was another good friend.
Bellingham, still a relative newcomer in Madrid having only moved there in June 2023, is still developing his relationship with team-mates but he is close to Vinicius Junior, Eduardo Camavinga, Ferland Mendy, Rodygo, Brahim Diaz and Aurelien Tchouameni among others. Sources with knowledge of the Madrid dressing room, speaking anonymously to protect their positions, insist he has settled in well and has shown both humility and good humour.
In Madrid, little is known about Bellingham’s social life. Early in his Madrid career, he visited De Maria restaurant, one of the city’s most famous, with fellow new signings Arda Guler and Diaz but Bellingham largely keeps a low profile. He is supported closely by his mother, Denise, and has spent time back in Birmingham and the surrounding area on international breaks.
His friendship with Alexander-Arnold, however, continues to blossom and this summer it became a key theme during England’s run to the final of Euro 2024. When Bellingham scored England’s opening goal of Euro 2024, he dropped to one knee along with Alexander-Arnold before both covered their faces with their hands. It was later explained that the celebration was an in-joke around the card game, Werewolf, that members of the team play for fun during down time.
Bellingham and Alexander-Arnold celebrate England scoring against Serbia in the Euros (Ozan Kose/AFP via Getty Images)
England’s official social media channels quickly played on their friendship. The pair took part in the Football Association’s Lions’ Den YouTube show during the Euros, playing a “how well do you know each other?” competition, which they giggled their way through. During a round of questions submitted by supporters, both players said they would like Denzel Washington to play them in a movie of all their lives.
In October, Bellingham also surprised Alexander-Arnold by jumping out from behind a sign reading ‘Happy Birthday Trent’ at England’s training base at St. George’s Park, a moment an FA photographer duly recorded for posterity.
Bellingham prepares to surprise his friend at St. George’s Park (Eddie Keogh – The FA/The FA via Getty Images)
The friendship between two of the country’s bright young things is an unquestionably useful marketing tool for the FA, but there is also no doubt that it is founded on a genuine affection.
Alexander-Arnold and Bellingham like to socialise together after international games too, and have been on holiday as part of a larger group in the past. After the European Championship this summer they both went to Los Angeles for a break.
Yet underpinning their friendship is a steely competitiveness.
When the pair meet up at England camps, there’s a fierce desire to outdo one another and win whether during training drills or practice games. In the Lions’ Den show, they were asked which of them was the most competitive. True to form, they each chose themselves and argued afterwards about their reasons.
They have plenty to be competitive about. Bellingham has taken a very different path to Alexander-Arnold, who has only ever played for Liverpool having graduated through the club’s academy. His friend, however, has had a carefully calibrated career path — from Birmingham City to Borussia Dortmund and now Madrid. Between them they have won two league titles, three domestic cups and two Champions Leagues.
In 2023 Bellingham won the Ballon d’Or Kopa Trophy, awarded to the best footballer aged 21 or under, becoming the first Englishman to do so. Alexander-Arnold, for his part, wants to go one better. “I believe I can [win the Ballon d’Or],” he told Sky Sports recently. “I want to be the first full-back to ever do it.”
Whether the pair fulfil their grand ambitions at the same club is another matter. Not so long ago, it was Liverpool fans who were hoping that Alexander-Arnold may use his friendship with Bellingham to their club’s advantage.
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In the spring of 2023, it was clear that Bellingham was going to leave Dortmund and a host of top clubs were interested in signing him. Liverpool were one, and both Alexander-Arnold and Henderson, then Liverpool captain, made a point of delivering positive feedback on life at Anfield.
In truth, however, Liverpool were never likely to win that race. Once it became clear what it would take to sign Bellingham financially, and that his heart was set on Madrid, Anfield’s powerbrokers decided to spend their resources on a wider midfield restructuring, with Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Ryan Gravenberch and then Wataru Endo all joining.
Now the question is whether Real can leverage Bellingham’s friendship with Alexander-Arnold to help sway his mind. The defender can, in theory, sign a pre-contract agreement with a foreign club from January 1, given he is a free agent in July, and it would be surprising if the matter had not come up in conversation.
Bellingham was being diplomatic in Madrid’s pre-match press conference last night. When asked about the prospect of potentially playing with Alexnader-Arnold, he replied: “I’ll be next to him in the national team so that’s guaranteed. It’s disrespectful to talk about him before such a big game because he’s a Liverpool player. The important thing is to take the pressure off from him. He’s a great friend of mine and normally I want him to do well, regardless of tomorrow.”
Could Bellingham and Alexander-Arnold be club team-mates next season? (Eddie Keogh – The FA/The FA via Getty Images)
For as long as there are no concrete developments, fans of both clubs are trying to decipher whatever messages are sent into the ether. Alexander-Arnold is not oblivious to the intrigue — he marked signing up to a new smartphone partner this week with the Instagram message: “Trust me to make the switch… to Google Pixel.”
That, however, can wait. Alexander-Arnold’s immediate priority is getting back out onto the pitch after missing the Premier League win at Southampton on Sunday with a hamstring injury. The right-back was forced off early into the win over Aston Villa on November 9 and missed England’s following Nations League games. He had previously started every Premier League and Champions League game for Liverpool, but trained with the squad yesterday ahead of tonight’s tie and is fit enough to potentially make an appearance from the bench.
Bellingham, meanwhile, is growing into the season after a stuttering start and has scored in back-to-back games. Madrid are now just four points behind Barcelona in La Liga, with a game in hand, but know they must address their poor record in Europe, which sees them halfway down the group-phase table.
The stage is set not just for a meeting of two of Europe’s gilded teams, but two of the continent’s elite talents.
Additional reporting: Mario Cortegana Santos
(Top photo: Inaki Esnaola/Getty Images)
