"Didn't play his best game" – Liverpool boss Arne Slot speaks up on Trent Alexander-Arnold amid criticism after Manchester United draw

Liverpool head coach has admitted Trent Alexander-Arnold struggled to be at his best in the Reds' 2-2 Premier League stalemate against Manchester United.

Earlier this Sunday (January 5), Alexander-Arnold became a hot topic of discussion owing to his lackadaisical performance. Both of Manchester United's goals came down his flank as he failed to properly mark his player multiple times.

However, despite the Real Madrid-linked defender's poor display, Liverpool managed to hold on to a point. Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah were both on the scoresheet, while Lisandro Martinez and Amad Diallo netted for the visitors.

Ahead of his side's EFL Cup semi-final first leg clash against Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday (January 9), Slot was asked to opine on Alexander-Arnold's latest poor outing. He replied (h/t Liverpool Echo):

"We were all disappointed by the way we played and the result. Not just Trent. He didn't play his best game but it's not the first time in his life. He's played so many games well for this club. [Same as] some others. They know if you play 50/60 games [in a season]... once in a while, you don't have the best performance. Maybe we should highlight more that these players are able to play so many."

When asked if has talked with the full-back, the Dutchman responded:

"Yeah, I have. It's normal. I don't share things I talk about. After every game, we show them how well they did. Sometimes you have to show what they can improve, but I don't just do this with Trent. Look at [Alexis Mac Allister], he can sprint harder for second goal. But they have all worked very hard, gave everything and we still got a result."

So far this campaign, Alexander-Arnold has scored one goal and registered five assists in 24 appearances across competitions for the Merseyside outfit.

Manchester United legend heaps praise on 23-year-old midfielder after recent Liverpool draw

Speaking on Premier League Productions, Manchester United great Paul Scholes highlighted Manuel Ugarte's display against Liverpool earlier this Sunday. He said (h/t Metro):

"This lad is really growing in confidence. I thought he took up some great positions, he helped defensively, he helped with the attack and I thought he had the composure to take the ball as well."

Ugarte, 23, completed 36 of his 41 passes and won three of his four tackles and eight of his 17 total duels during Manchester United's recent trip to Liverpool.

Since leaving Paris Saint-Germain in a potential £51 million transfer past summer, Ugarte has laid out one assist in 22 overall outings for Manchester United.