Conor Bradley locks up Kylian Mbappe

Given all the headlines and pre-match speculation surrounding Trent Alexander-Arnold and a possible move to Real Madrid, it was poetic that his understudy Conor Bradley would be the name on everyone’s mind.

Coming up against one of the world’s best strikers, French World Cup winner Kylian Mbappe, the young Northern Ireland international full-back had an important task ahead of him if Liverpool were to get anything out of the match.

And to say he gave a masterclass doesn’t quite do justice to his efforts.

Time and again, Bradley made sure to keep his positioning steady and not fall into the trap of committing too early to let Mbappe dribble past him.

His last-ditch tackle for the Kop End faithful will be remembered by Liverpool fans for years to come.

And as such, his performance caught the attention of the Spanish media.

MARCA’s player ratings of the 15-time Champions League winners vilified Mbappe for his efforts, which were largely left out by Bradley all night.

They said: “He ran with a lot of speed but he was found by a great performance from Conor Bradley.

“It didn’t work out, the team looked for him but didn’t find him and when he had to defend, he didn’t.”

Not bad for a 21-year-old player from Liverpool’s academy, who only played in the third Champions League match of his career.

Liverpool’s full-back dilemma

After Kelleher’s excellent form in goal continued last night, with Alisson Becker remaining sidelined with an injury, Liverpool will have a tough decision to make if both players are ultimately fit to play.

And the same dilemma is starting to arise with Arne Slot’s right backs.

During Trent’s absence due to injury, Bradley put in a performance that Trent would find difficult to match, although we all know he is more than capable of doing so.

If both are fit, it’s likely that Slot will opt for Trent, but last night we got a good idea of ​​how Liverpool could still compete against the best without him in the team, which could be a situation the Reds have to deal with for a long time have to do. term, if the England international decides to leave Merseyside.

His contract talks have been going on for a while now, and we still don’t know if we’ll be even close to a resolution anytime soon.

Liverpool were hopeful that Trent could be fit for Sunday’s Manchester City match at Anfield after the defender had been absent for a few weeks due to tightness in his hamstring.

At his best, he is still Arne Slot’s preferred choice on the right flank, and while this would be a blow for Bradley – who is currently nursing a minor injury – the Northern Irishman has shown he can be trusted when called upon is done to him. .