Wayne Rooney said Real Madrid defender Trent Alexander-Arnold must improve off the ball but if he does, “there’s no doubt that he will be the best full-back in the world.”

For all his attacking qualities, Alexander-Arnold has been accused of being defensively weaker than other top full backs and it is not uncommon for rival teams to target the space left behind when the Englishman marauds up the field.

Playing for Real Madridgainst Benfica, he put in a solid defensive display but it was once again the attacking third of the pitch where he looked more comfortable.

Watching on in the Stadium da Luz was Rooney who suggested that teams will continue to target the wide areas in transition and that Alexander-Arnold had to improve in that department.

“A lot of the teams will target down the sides in transition,” Rooney said on Amazon Prime Video.

“He has to be good at defending. He has to be good at both sides of the game. On the ball, he’s one of the best in world football.

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“Off the ball, defensively, that’s where he has to improve. That’s where the question marks are on Trent.

“If he improves that, there’s no doubt that he will be the best full-back in the world.”

Alexander-Arnold’s performance in the Champions League match has been overshadowed by an alleged racist insult being used by Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni aimed at Vinicius Jr.

After the match, Alexander-Arnold spoke to CBS and said the team hopes there is “justice” for what they say occurred.

“I’ve not directly seen what’s happened, but what’s been reported is something that’s a disgrace to football,” the former Liverpool full-back said.

“There’s no place for it and it’s ruined the night for everyone.

“We hope there’s an investigation, we hope justice will be served to the player and we stick together as a team.

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“When you see [Vinicius go to the referee] it’s something serious. He’s reacted the right way, he’s reported it, and as a player that’s all you can do.

“As a team, a squad and a club we support him. We stood up against what was a disappointing reaction from the environment and atmosphere.

“Vini’s had incidents like this before, has been subjected to this numerous times.

“He’s gone through something very disappointing tonight. It’s disgraceful to the sport but he’s handled it right.

“It’s ruined the night. It’s a disgrace to the sport. It’s a disgrace in society as well. There’s no place for it.

“If incidents like this happen then we can only deal with it the way we did tonight. I’m very proud of the squad and how we got round Vini. We reacted the right way, kept our heads and stayed calm.”

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