If you happen to imagine social media, Trent Alexander-Arnold is the one participant within the historical past of soccer to help a team-mate in each place on the pitch.
In fact, the statistic going viral on Monday is totally false.
In response to numerous social media accounts together with Liverpool pages ‘Watch LFC’, ‘Something Liverpool’, ‘The Anfield Buzz’ and ‘The Kop Watch’, Alexander-Arnold has now assisted gamers in each place on the pitch.
Meaning: goalkeeper, centre-back, right-back, left-back, defensive midfielder, central midfielder, left wing, proper wing and striker.
Apparently, no different participant in footballing historical past had achieved so till Liverpool’s No. 66 pulled off the exceptional feat.
Solely he hasn’t.
Maybe unsurprisingly, the statistic that’s going viral on social media is completely false, not least on account of Alexander-Arnold by no means having assisted one other right-back.
That shouldn’t be a lot of a shock, given he has performed nearly all of his senior soccer for Liverpool and England as a right-back himself.
It had been urged, someway, that Alexander-Arnold’s help for a right-back got here when deployed in midfield for England – teeing up Kyle Walker.
Walker’s first and solely aim for England got here of their 1-1 draw with Ukraine on Saturday, during which Alexander-Arnold was not concerned on account of a hamstring damage.
His solely official help when enjoying as a midfielder was for Bukayo Saka in England’s 7-0 win over North Macedonia.
Alexander-Arnold has assisted 21 totally different gamers in a Liverpool shirt, per LFCHistory, which does, after all, embody Alisson‘s header towards West Brom.
That aim did place him in an unique group of gamers who’ve laid on targets for goalkeepers, but it surely didn’t make him the primary to take action.
In response to queries on which right-back Alexander-Arnold had arrange, it was argued in some quarters that James Milner ‘counted’, given he performed the position on plenty of events for Liverpool.
In fact, he has by no means assisted a aim for Milner in his profession.
No matter these specifics, to assert he’s the primary participant in historical past to help a aim for each place on the pitch is unimaginable to know.
That hasn’t stopped it gaining traction on social media, the place truth is much less necessary than a sensationalism – like Pele claiming he was essentially the most prolific goalscorer in footballing historical past with 1,283 targets in 1,366 video games.
Pele did, actually, depend these scored in friendlies and beginner video games, and even some whereas serving within the Brazilian military.
And with Elon Musk’s rebrand from Twitter to X now paying sure accounts a minimize of advert income based mostly on views per submit, it’ll solely worsen sooner or later.
