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Football

08th May 2019

Graeme Souness’ analysis of Alexander Arnold quick corner is pure genius

Niall McIntyre

“They are a team of dopes”

All hail the Liverpool legends. Fabinho set the tone with his snarls before the game was even two minutes old. Andy Robertson was sticking it to everybody who came near him, Sadio Mane must be one of the fittest individuals on the planet.

Trent Alexander Arnold, what else is there to say? Divock Origi, just build the statue now.

But for every hero, there’s a misfit. 3-0 up, this is going to be routine. Messi, Suarez, Busquets, Pique. There’s nobody else in the world you would want to see it out.

But how quickly it all goes to pot.

It wasn’t until the 90th minute of this game that they actually strung a few passes together. Like rabbits in highlights from the very first minute, Jordi Alba could have filled up a whole coach on his own.

Never one to dilute his words, Graeme Souness unsurprisingly lavished praise on Liverpool’s heroes and on the other end of the scale, he Barcelona have it.

Trent Alexander-Arnold’s snappy corner summed the night up. Liverpool sharp, alive and ready, Barcelona like under-8s.

“He realises a few dopes, the great Ronnie Moran, he used to say to us, ‘find the dope.’ What he meant is at a corner kick or a throw-in or when the ball goes dead, someone would go to sleep, he would say ‘find the dope,’ and there is a team of dopes…”

Alexander-Arnold found the dopes.

“That is criminal for a professional footballer, they’ve all turned their back on it…”

The Liverpool ball-boy was quite the opposite.

“Watch the ball-boy here, he puts it on the spot, watch how quickly, two season tickets for this little fella, two fabulous tickets for the final for that little fella!”

Simple as that.