Arne Slot outlines Liverpool plan for 'very talented' Conor Bradley after confirming Arsenal start 'to be better prepared for next season'

With confirmation coming earlier this week that Trent Alexander-Arnold will leave Anfield this summer, almost certainly for Real Madrid, it’s expected Bradley will have an enhanced role for the Reds going forward.

The 21-year-old has racked up 16 Premier League appearances so far this season as Slot’s side celebrated title glory and also played five times during their Champions League campaign.

Liverpool have three league matches remaining of a memorable campaign, including lifting the Premier League in front of home support after their meeting with Crystal Palace on May 25, and Bradley is set to earn crucial minutes as Slot prepares for life without Alexander-Arnold.

“Team selection is as it has been,” said Slot in his pre-match press conference. “It’s going to be the same thought process going through my mind for the Sunday game.

“I think if Conor would have been available for Chelsea, he would have started already. But he wasn’t, so there’s a fair chance that he (Conor) will start.

“I already said Conor is going to start because I think he needs playing time, to get games under his belt to be better prepared for next season.”

Alexander-Arnold came through the ranks at Anfield and redefined the right-back position with his exquisite range of passing, helping his boyhood club win two Premier League titles alongside sealing Champions League glory in 2019 under Jurgen Klopp.

It leaves big boots for Bradley, who was recently named Northern Ireland’s Player of the Year, to fill and Slot has challenged the talented full-back to put injury issues behind him after missing stages of the current campaign.

“Let’s not compare him with Trent now already; they are two different types, in my opinion,” added Slot. “With Conor, I think we all see the potential.

"But last week, I walked onto the pitch together with him, and I looked around because, for me, it was the first time.

“And I was very surprised to hear from him that he had a comment about the stadium as well. And I looked at him like, ‘Didn’t you know yet?’ He said, ‘No, it’s the first time that I’m here as well’.

“And that was a bit of a surprise to me because, for me, he’s already further in his development than being for the first time in an away game like Chelsea.

“A very talented player, Conor. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been fit throughout the whole season, and to become a very good player, you have to be available every single week as well.

“That’s the first step he has to make for next season, but we have a lot of confidence in Conor as a very good full-back for Liverpool, and that’s already what he’s shown in the past two seasons.”