Roy Keane was blunt in his critique of Trent Alexander-Arnold’s midfield performance during England’s 1-1 draw against Denmark, asserting that the Liverpool player is not suited to a central role. Keane also remarked that Declan Rice, who also had a disappointing showing in England’s Euro 2024 match on Thursday night, had to “babysit” Alexander-Arnold in midfield.

Gareth Southgate has chosen to start Alexander-Arnold in a more advanced position in both of England’s opening matches, substituting him with Conor Gallagher each time.

Despite this criticism, Alexander-Arnold was the most creative midfielder for England on Thursday afternoon, completing 88 percent of his passes and creating three chances, more than any other player, according to Opta.

However, Keane maintains that the experiment of playing Alexander-Arnold in midfield has been unsuccessful, stating that the right back has “come up short” in England’s initial matches.

“When you’ve been substituted in both games, it’s not a good sign,” Keane told ITV Sport.

“I always thought it was a huge gamble to play him in a position he doesn’t regularly occupy for his club. Some say he drifts into that role for Liverpool, but there’s a big difference between drifting into a position and starting there.

“I’ve played in midfield; it’s a tough position. Physically, managing your distances… He’s come up short in the two games.

“It’s not entirely his fault. This is on Gareth Southgate. It’s a huge gamble to put a full-back in the middle of the park. This isn’t against top-tier teams like France or Spain; it’s against teams we expected England to handle comfortably and dominate possession.

“It was a big ask for him, and he’s not up to it.”

After the match, Southgate strangely admitted that starting Alexander-Arnold in midfield was an ‘experiment’ because they couldn’t find a replacement for Kalvin Phillips.

However, Ian Wright defended the Liverpool star, arguing that he had very few options ahead of him as England’s forwards struggled to create opportunities in the final third.

Keane added: ‘We all talk in football about what you do in possession, but it’s really important against the better teams what you do out of possession.

‘That’s why he’s been thrown in at the deep end. Ok, he’s going to be comfortable on the ball and he can see a pass there’s no doubting that, but it’s the other bits of his game – Rice feels like he is almost babysitting him in there. You can’t do that at this level. You will be found out.’