It is difficult for Gareth Southgate to choose the perfect squad when they have world-class players ready to serve their country. The England fans are divided on the choice of full-backs Southgate choose. The extremely talented Trent of Liverpool is not his preferred choice and this has created huge criticism on him.
Reece James is a real threat in front of the goal this season. The attacking capabilities of James make him more suitable to fit in the Gareth Southgate system. If we are to understand the better player among them then we would have to compare them statistically.
Reece James or Trent Alexander Arnold? Who is the better full back? Let’s find out below.
🏴 England have Trent Alexander-Arnold and Reece James…😅
— Mozo Football (@MozoFootball) November 15, 2021
“⚽️🅰️⚽️🅰️⚽️🅰️⚽️🅰️⚽️🅰️⚽️🅰️” pic.twitter.com/yLksbcgD5p
It is no surprise that creativity from the full-back position can be helpful in big games. In Euro 2020 Luke Shaw scored an important goal in the final of the tournament. Any ideal full-back should be great in defence and help in attack too.
In the 2019/20 season when both of these players were developing into who they are today they made a statement by their performances.
It is clear that Trent is better at attacking play compared to James while in terms of defending Reece James is clear of Trent AAA. Gareth Southgate has a lot to think about before benching any of them.
📊 STAT: Trent Alexander-Arnold has registered 2+ assists in a game for the second time this season:
— Anfield Watch (@AnfieldWatch) November 15, 2021
🅰️🅰️ vs Atletico Madrid
🅰️🅰️🅰️ vs San Marino
Our right back 😍 #awlive [@Squawka] pic.twitter.com/hSjVThrcb0
In the current season, Reece James is proving himself in attack too and has the same number of goals as Cristiano Ronaldo and Bruno Fernandes. The player has the highest number of goals by any defender in the Premier League. Meanwhile, Trent is also proving himself as he made a hat-trick of assists for England to help them qualify for the World Cup.
These two young talents are quite close to each other if we compare them statistically. The traits which Trent lacks is dominated by Reece while Trent dominates on different criteria. It would be too harsh to call a winner based on the above figures. It is a draw.
Only Mo Salah, Michail Antonio and Jamie Vardy have been involved in more goals in the Premier League this season than Reece James. ✅
— Stats24 (@_Stats24) November 11, 2021
Giving Gareth Southgate a headache! pic.twitter.com/KsfO4HBvrZ
The Liverpool managed by Klopp has retained the Glory which was lost over the years. Trent Alexander Arnold was a big part of it and one of the main players in the system of Jurgen Klopp. No football fan can ever forget the ‘Corner Taken Quickly Origiiiii’ moment. It wouldn’t have happened if Trent didn’t cross it in.
Trent won the Premier League, the Champions League, the Club World cup and a Super Cup with Liverpool in the last 4 years.
Reece James is quite younger than Trent and has seen less glory in his pro career. Although he did win the Champions League with Chelsea in 2021 while he is yet to win a Premier League title.
Trent AAA is the winner in this category.
Reece James' leg has more Champions League trophy than Manchester City, Arsenal and Tottenham combined pic.twitter.com/NczRei7kt0
— Malik Ofori (@malikofori) August 2, 2021
A player is considered to be the best only if he has some individual achievements too. If you are the main player of the team then the individual awards follow.
In this case, Reece James is almost 2 years younger than Trent and has very few significant individual awards. Even after considering their age gap, the award cabinet of Trent Alexander Arnold is impressive.
Individual Awards Of Trent Alexander Arnold
PFA Team of the Year: 2018–19 Premier League, 2019–20 Premier League
PFA Young Player of the Year: 2019–20 Premier League
UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season: 2018–19
FIFA FIFPro World11: 2020
Premier League Player of the Month: December 2019
IFFHS Men’s World Team: 2019, 2020
UEFA Team of the Year: 2019
ESM Team of the Year: 2019–20
Premier League Young Player of the Season: 2019–20
Individual Awards Of Reece James
Wigan Athletic Player of the Year: 2018–19
FA Cup Team of the Year: 2020–21
Trent is clear of James when it comes to getting awards with their name on them.
Trent Alexander-Arnold is the first English player to make the FIFPro Men's World XI since Wayne Rooney in 2011.
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) December 17, 2020
He's the first English defender since John Terry in 2009 to make the XI. pic.twitter.com/pP7fqLcNzg
The two players are quite young and have a long career left to prove their dominance. As of now Trent Alexander is better than Reece James as he can help from behind to make more G/A contributions. The football pundits name Trent as the most creative football player in the Premier League for the 2021 season.
James is getting more involved in the attacking setup and is getting better at it. If he wins the Premier League in 2022 it will make their stats too similar and maybe he can even go on to make a better career than Trent in future.
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