Following an impressive La Liga debut from Dumfries, Trent Alexander-Arnold appears to have lost his starting position at Real Madrid. The former Liverpool right-back joined the Spanish giants on a free transfer last summer but initially failed to make an impact.

In his first full season, Alexander-Arnold made 36 appearances and provided 7 assists. The 27-year-old dealt with injuries throughout the campaign, missing a total of 22 matches due to muscle tears and hamstring issues.

This season could bring new challenges for the right-back, as Jose Mourinho has returned to Real Madrid this summer to take the helm of the Spanish club once again. One of his first moves in the transfer market was signing Dumfries from Inter Milan for £17.1 million (€20 million).

Now, Spanish media outlets have assessed Alexander-Arnold's performance in Real Madrid's La Liga match against Espanyol on Saturday. Real Madrid won 2-1 with goals from Bellingham and Dani Carvajal.

Alexander-Arnold came on as a substitute in the 80th minute, and Spanish media coverage of his display was lukewarm.

Below, Liverpool Echo has compiled reactions from Spanish media, with local outlets suggesting he may now be Jose Mourinho's second-choice right-back.

Marca gave the defender a 5/10 rating and noted that he came on as Real Madrid needed to "do more in attack".

The outlet's assessment of Dumfries read: "Dumfries gave everything, beating Darder. He lowered his body and stretched his leg to make an excellent tackle. Defensively, he was very good. In the 80th minute, he was replaced by Trent. The Dutch winger played a good game in La Liga. Defensively much superior to Trent... but somewhat out of place in attack, although he tried his best throughout the match."

Meanwhile, AS believes Arnold was brought on to "find Espi" with accurate passes. However, the defender "barely participated in the match" and failed to meet the outlet's expectations.

But what should concern Alexander-Arnold is the praise Dumfries received. One assessment stated: "He started the season's first match and has overtaken Trent in the pecking order. He proved it with his performance: energetic in defence, and especially in attack, he showed wonderful commitment. In a match like this, Guler played as a winger but was very much involved in midfield, so Dumfries' runs down the flank were crucial. He made several dangerous runs into the opposition box. Towards the end, he also played an important role in several defensive situations."

Mundo Deportivo stated that new manager Jose Mourinho "prefers Dumfries" over Alexander-Arnold and signed the Dutchman this summer to be a starter. The outlet also notes the defender will be considered a "backup option" when Mourinho wants to alter the match through tactical changes.

Sport also believes Dumfries has "earned his place" in the competition for the starting role with Alexander-Arnold, but notes that his role in the team "depends on" what Mourinho demands this season. However, this outlet offered the most positive assessment of the English player, saying he "tried to get involved in the match" and "provided quality passes to Espi."

Reports also suggest Alexander-Arnold could be "more effective" in a central role, meaning Mourinho may experiment with converting the 27-year-old to a more central position this season.

Website AF đã ra mắt! Xem tin tức đầy đủ, bình luận, chi tiết trận đấu và thống kê trên máy tính. Truy cập: www.allfootballapp.com