Report: Data expert names ideal Liverpool replacement for departing defender | OneFootball

Liverpool’s Next Right-Back Era: Can Oscar Mingueza Step Into Trent Alexander-Arnold’s Void?

Farewell to a Modern Icon

Liverpool supporters knew this day would come, but that doesn’t make it any easier. Trent Alexander-Arnold, the creative heart and tactical anomaly of Liverpool’s right flank, has confirmed his departure from Anfield at the end of the season. At just 26, his legacy is already secure — a Champions League winner, a Premier League champion, and a footballer who redefined the full-back role.

Now headed for Real Madrid, Alexander-Arnold’s exit is more than a transfer. It’s a shift in identity for a team that has relied on his passing range and vision as much as his overlapping runs and set-piece genius. His departure leaves Liverpool with a vacancy that no simple right-back can fill.

Data-Driven Hope: Mingueza Named as Ideal Successor

According to iNews, a name has surfaced that’s as surprising as it is intriguing. Oscar Mingueza, currently at Celta Vigo, has been highlighted by Analytics FC’s CEO Alex Stewart as a strong candidate to replace Alexander-Arnold.

“He’s an excellent fit,” Stewart explained. “Brings much of the quality of passing, except perhaps in transitions, and adds a bit more defensively than Trent, as well as being able to fill in at centre-back or even left-back if needed.”

Mingueza, a La Masia graduate, never truly cemented himself at Barcelona but has quietly rebuilt his career in Galicia. His defensive versatility and tactical intelligence are highly rated, and at 25, he’s reaching his peak.

Tactical Evolution Under Arne Slot

Liverpool’s tactical framework is likely to evolve. Slot’s sides are known for controlled possession and positional rotations — a system that may not require the flamboyance of Alexander-Arnold but will still need a right-back comfortable playing in narrow lanes, pressing high, and contributing in midfield zones.

Mingueza’s ability to step into different roles — including as an auxiliary centre-back — makes him a natural candidate for such fluid demands. He won’t be a like-for-like replacement, but perhaps that’s the point. Replacing Alexander-Arnold isn’t about replication; it’s about adaptation.

Other Contenders in the Frame

While Mingueza may be data’s darling, other names have long been mentioned. Jeremie Frimpong of Bayer Leverkusen offers electric pace and attacking prowess, while Liverpool academy graduate Conor Bradley has impressed in his cameos and is viewed internally as a genuine option.

Photo: IMAGO

What’s clear is that Liverpool will not find another Trent. The void he leaves will need to be filled collectively — tactically, emotionally, and perhaps creatively. But if Mingueza does arrive, he may prove an understated solution to an overwhelming question.

Our View – Anfield Index Analysis

The pain of losing a generational Scouser like Trent Alexander-Arnold cuts deep. It’s not just about his footballing gifts — though they are immense — but about what he represents: a boyhood Red living the dream and reshaping the modern game.

Oscar Mingueza is no Trent, and that’s not meant as a slight. Nobody is. But if Liverpool are evolving under Arne Slot, then maybe this is the perfect moment to recalibrate the right-back role altogether. Mingueza doesn’t shout on the pitch, but he reads it well, and he offers flexibility that might allow Liverpool to keep opposition guessing in ways Trent once did.

Still, it’s hard not to feel like something irreplaceable is being lost. Frimpong excites. Bradley feels like a project with promise. But Mingueza? He’s tidy, smart, and versatile — the sort of player who, if supported properly, could do an excellent job in a different kind of Liverpool. He’s not a marquee name, but he might be the right one. What matters now is that the club backs Slot’s structure — because Trent didn’t just fit into Liverpool’s system, he was the system.