Michael Owen has issued advice to Trent Alexander-Arnold as he admitted that playing for Real Madrid was an “amazing experience” – while conceding he lost “control” of the destiny of his career after leaving Anfield.

The full-back has enjoyed a bright start to the campaign, having featured 19 times to help the Reds to summit of the Premier League and Champions League standings. However, the debate over his long-term future on Merseyside refuses to go away with the homegrown defender’s contract set to expire next summer.

With just seven months left on his current agreement, Alexander-Arnold would be allowed to depart his boyhood club for nothing if he fails to renew his terms. Amid the uncertainty, speculation has abounded that the 26-year-old could be a target for Real Madrid at the end of the campaign.

Irrespective of these rumors, what is undeniable is that the player is within his rights to talk with foreign clubs about a pre-contract agreement from January 1. Now, ex-Liverpool striker Owen has waded into the discourse over the right-back’s future as he explained the pros and cons of a potential move away from Anfield.

The pundit is in a position to offer a unique perspective on the situation, having left Liverpool for Real Madrid back in 2004. His time at Santiago Bernabeu ultimately proved mixed as he spent just a single season in Spain before making the move to Newcastle United in 2005 – having instead desired a return to Merseyside.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with Liverpool.com, arranged by AceOdds, Owen first outlined the positives of staying at Liverpool for Alexander-Arnold as his future remains unresolved at the club he has supported since he was a boy. He said: “He’s done everything at Liverpool.

“He’s won every trophy. He can continue in that vein and just have the most wonderful career at one club and forever be loved by that one club and all that comes with it, earn a good living and have great fun and be with his mates in the club that you’ve always been at, there are so many positives to be taken from that.”

“I’m a living example and people I played with, the likes of Jamie Carragher did exactly that,” he continued, as he weighed up the possibility of the right-back going on to potentially become a one-club man at Anfield. “He will reap all the benefits that come with that.”

On the flip side, Owen then explained what Alexander-Arnold can expect if he does decide to sign for Los Blancos, like he did over two decades ago. He continued: “I had the opportunity to do what Trent’s possibly considering.

“I chose that because I thought, ‘That’d be an amazing experience, I should give it a go’. You lose a little bit of control after that, you’re almost in a trading commodity, you’re out there and if you’re doing well or not doing well, then you’re not that attached and ingrained to a club like you used to be.

“But then again, the positives of going to Real Madrid, they’re there for all to see. The life experience… we only live once. Living in a different country, learning a language, having a different climate, different food, all these things are quite incredible.

“Playing with one of the biggest teams in the world, or probably the biggest team in the world could be quite tempting. There are pros and cons for both ways.”

Going back to his previous example, Owen then compared the story of his own career to that of one-club man Jamie Carragher as he gave Alexander-Arnold some final words of advice. He added: “[From] my generation, someone like me and Jamie Carragher are probably the two examples; if you want to have a look at the pros and cons.

“Carragher is probably loved more than me at Liverpool because of his loyalty than the others, but I probably had experiences and met more people and had more of a life experience and all the rest of it that he didn’t have, and all the positives and benefits that go with that. It just depends on what floats your boat.”

The former Kop hero added: “He’s certainly got to be happy and content with the way the team is and the trophies that he can win at Liverpool. But does he want a lifestyle change, and then it’s personal preference.”