How Anfield's Alexander-Arnold toxicity came to a head

The power of the Anfield crowd is well documented in football - on so many occasions over the years, Liverpool have been roared to famous victories by their ers.

During Sunday's 2-2 draw with arch-rivals Manchester United, though, a subdued atmosphere was punctuated by howls of derision aimed at one of the club's own players.

The sub-par performance of vice-captain Trent Alexander-Arnold - whose future is in doubt with his contract up in June, and Real Madrid circling - was consistently met with groans, abusive name-calling and expletive-laden shouts that he should leave as soon as possible.

This wasn't the entirety of the home , but from the point he miscued a early in the game, Alexander-Arnold had a significant proportion of the crowd on his back.

At one point in the second half, head coach Arne Slot remonstrated with the crowd over their treatment of the right-back.

Gareth Roberts, host of the Liverpool fan podcast Late Challenge and a Kop season-ticket holder, told the BBC: "Everything about it was weird. There were a few boos around me. It goes against being a er doesn't it? It's gone toxic from a proportion of the fanbase."

How has it ended up this way?

Alexander-Arnold has been a key part of Liverpool's strong run so far this season, producing high-quality ing and playmaking in attack, while being much improved defensively. Occasional poorer performances have been blots on a generally excellent campaign.

But fans have worried since last summer that a player who ed the Reds' academy aged six was setting himself up for a move away. With the situation still unresolved, the relationship between fans and player has become more tense, strained and angry.

Alexander-Arnold irritated some Reds ers in October by saying in an interview with Sky Sports that he would rather win a Ballon d'Or, external, football's most prestigious individual honour, than another Champions League with his boyhood team. Since then, there has been a belief among some fans that he is more focused on his own achievements.

Then he celebrated with a 'chat' gesture referencing the gossip about his future after scoring against West Ham on 29 December. That led to widespread fan frustration, given that the main reason for the speculation is that Alexander-Arnold has not made clear publicly whether he wants to stay or go.

Neither Virgil van Dijk nor Mohamed Salah - who has made repeated claims in interviews that he is not close to agreeing a new deal with Liverpool and expects to leave in the summer - have been targeted with derision or abuse during matches.

The fact that Alexander-Arnold was born and raised in Liverpool seems key to that. Fans of all clubs often believe that they have a greater right to ownership over the careers of local players, and that they are owed greater loyalty by "one of our own".

Roberts added: "People think: 'You've grown up as a sco, a Liverpool fan, you've lived our dream, and therefore how could you possibly consider going anywhere else">