Real Madrid have welcomed new signing Trent Alexander-Arnold to the club, following months of speculation. The former Liverpool right-back arrives at the club after two decades on Merseysideand began his time at Los Blancos in style, with his opening words in near-perfect Spanish.

The 26-year-old international was presented with the number 12 shirt, and will wear ‘Trent’ on the back rather than his surname. Real Madrid had reached an agreement on terms with Alexander-Arnold for him to join on a free at the end of his contract this summer, but with Los Blancos keen to have him for the Club World Cup, settled on a reported €10m deal with Liverpool.

Alexander-Arnold’s first words to Real Madrid fans

As is customary with new signings, President Florentino Perez welcomed Alexander-Arnold to the club, and the stage was then left to him for an opening speech, conducted entirely in Spanish – he later admitted he had been learning for a few months.

“Good afternoon to everyone, thank you to President Florentino Perez, and Real Madrid as a club, for this opportunity. Signing for a club like Real Madrid is not something that happens every day. It’s a dream come true.”

“I’m very excited to show my game to the Madridistas. But I’m conscious that playing for Real Madrid is a great responsibility. I’m ready to give all I can for the team, and for the Madridistas. I’m very excited to show my game, and win many titles. And to be a champion, to grow and play with the best in the world. Thank you and Hala Madrid!”

Alexander-Arnold press conference

After speaking in the club’s auditorium first, Alexander-Arnold was thrown to the press, conducting his first duties as a Real Madrid player.

“It’s very exciting for me, I’ve been waiting for this day for a while now. It’s a dream come true. There’s a lot of work to do, but I’m excited to get started. By waiting a long time, I mean a couple of weeks, not years. But I’m very excited. Whether you support the club or not, you have to respect the club and the trophies, and a big reason why I joined is to be a part of the success going forward and the history,” he began.

“We go straight to America to win a trophy, and I can’t wait to get started.”

Alexander-Arnold was also asked whether he had spoken with new manager Xabi Alonso, and what he was expecting of him.

“Yeah I’ve spoken to him, we’ve talked a little bit. It’s good to have that communication, and I told him that he was a big idol of mine growing up. To work with him now is a dream come true, watching him pass a ball growing up had a big impact on my game, I explained that to him as well, and it influenced me to go and train harder at that.

“Of course we haven’t formally met and had a proper chat, but I’m sure in the coming days and weeks we’ll be able to discuss what he expects from me. He’s shown how amazing he is as a manager, and I will be a sponge around him.”

Competition with Dani Carvajal

One of the question marks over Alexander-Arnold’s arrival is how it willl impact Dani Carvajal’s future. Carvajal will take over as captain next season from Luka Modric.

“He’s an amazing player. I have great respect for everything he has achieved so far, in terms of club and country. Achieving so much, you don’t do that without a lot of talent and hard work.”

Alexander-Arnold holds a friendship with Jude Bellingham, and some had suspected that the latter might have tried to persuade him to join him in Madrid.

“Yeah we spoke, but it wasn’t exactly what a lot of people think it is. We spoke a lot about Liverpool and Madrid, those are the conversations you have as players, as friends, you want to know what it’s like of course as a player. In the England team, he was the only one who did know. A lot of people feel he had a big role in it, but the club speaks for itself.”

Alexander-Arnold’s decision to leave Liverpool

Previously Alexander-Arnold had stated that he was keen to win the Ballon d’Or and some of the press had suggested a move to Real Madrid was partly with that in mind.

“The Ballon d’Or didn’t influence my decision at all, it’s going to be difficult to win it with all the players here around me. I’ve played against these players, I’ve admired them, I know how good they are. To be a part of the team, and to be with them and not against them will be good.”

On the choice to leave Liverpool, Alexander-Arnold admitted that it was understandably a case of split emotions.

“Being at Liverpool for so long, experiencing everything I did, and knowing that it was coming to an end was always going to be emotional for me. But going out in the way I did, I’m happy about it, the send off I got. The way the club treated me, the way fans treated me, I couldn’t say a bad word. Also the players, the management, the owners, incredible as well. It was a huge help, I had a conversation with the owners in the last few days, they were warm and welcoming, wished me the best on my new journey. To have those words from the club, meant a lot to me.”

“To be honest, it was never a question of where. It was whether to go or not. I think for me, I’ve known for a long time, if I was to leave Liverpool, it would only be to Real Madrid. Making that decision, it was not an easy one, I’d been there so long, and been part of it, eventually you have to make a decision. In my mind I’ve made the right one, and I’m very excited about it.”

Alexander-Arnold noted that he had done all he could at Liverpool.

“I achieved all my dreams, Liverpool allowed me to do everything I ever wanted. Being there for 20 years, I feel like it was the right moment for me. I feel like I’ve matured, and have the tools to go and be successful somewhere else. This oppotunity came up, and I had to seriously think about it, and this is the decision I came to. I think it’s the right one.”

Set-pieces at Real Madrid

He was also asked whether he was keen to take over as the set-piece taker at Real Madrid.

“Yeah of course, I want to be important, at every moment on the pitch, that’s the mentality you have to have on the pitch. With the ball, without it, set pieces, you have to influence the game at every moment you can.”

“I’m willing to do whatever the team needs. Whether that means being more defensive, playing passes, having the ball or whatever is required, I’m willing to do it.”