The England star is out of contract with Liverpool at the end of the season, with no sign yet that he will extend his stay at Anfield. Madrid have long been seen as the frontrunners to sign him as they look for Dani Carvajal’s successor.
The La Liga leaders saw a £20million bid for Alexander-Arnold rejected by Liverpool at New Year’s. The 26-year-old remains the Spanish giants’ top target despite seeing that offer turned down.
They can come to a pre-contract agreement with the right-back at any point until his Liverpool deal comes to an end. And it appears that they are now happy to wait until the summer before renewing their interest.
According to Revelo, Madrid believe that a deal to sign him in January is ‘practically impossible’. Instead, Alexander-Arnold is set to move to the Bernabeu in July, barring any ‘unexpected tun of events’.
Madrid chiefs have approved the decision to park their interest in the summer. Liverpool’s ‘lack of will’ towards letting Alexander-Arnold go and an expectation the right-back will not force an exit are cited as the two biggest factors for a January move being abandoned.
Los Blancos believe that Liverpool would not accept even a high offer, while Alexander-Arnold is thought to be ‘unconvinced’ that leaving the Reds in the middle of the season is the best option.
While Madrid will now push for a free transfer in the summer, they expect the Reds to also mount a sustained bid to keep him at Anfield. Carlo Ancelotti is now hoping to have Alexander-Arnold in his squad ahead of the Club World Cup, which Liverpool have not qualified for.
Ancelotti has been keen to avoid jeopardizing a potential move by speaking publicly about it. He said at the start of the month: “January signings? It’s a bit more complicated to talk about this. We’ll see, we’ll see. Talking about this is not easy at the moment.
“I said that we will not sign anyone in January before. Look, I can’t talk about it now. This is not the time and place. We will see what will happen but I have a great squad. We have got injuries and problems with that but we are also able to overcome them.”
Alexander-Arnold meanwhile has moved to keep rumours around his future out of the public eye. Instead, he is focusing on helping the Reds to win silverware this season.
“I have been at the club 20 years now, I have signed four or five contract extensions and none of those have been played out in public – and this one won’t be either,” he told Sky Sports in December.
“I think we win multiple trophies. I think that’s the level that we’re at, that’s the level we’ve shown that we’re capable of, beating the best teams in the world”