It's alright putting a few good/great crosses in a season, Becks did it every game it's not even close Beckham was insane.
David Beckham vs Trent Alexander-Arnold
- Thread starter Paxi
- Start date
He's actually not – this is the only big criticism of him at the moment (and the only argument for those who don't consider him the very best fullback in the world at the moment, which he could've been by some distance). There's a reason why Liverpool keep fielding a seemingly dull and unimaginative midfield unit of Fabinho-Henderson-Wijnaldum, and Alexander-Arnold (and Robertson, but not by that much) is that reason. Their fullbacks get free reign in attack and midfielders usually cover for them – and in the cases when Alexander-Arnold faces a good attacker one-on-one, he's not very likely to win. He's only 21 though and he'll probably improve in that aspect, but the moment it's his one big weakness.
The thing is we will never know whether he would have handled the defensive aspect of the game as well. Afterall, he spent most of his career at Manutd with Neville behind him.
I guess we could also argue, what would Arnold be like if he further up the pitch with a right-back behind him.
I did watch him, and he was top class, but I feel people exaggerate when comparing players just to make one out to better than another. I don't think that way; I think there is a limit to how good a player can get in one area, and what makes a player better is that they have multiple areas in which they have a high ability.
In terms of crossing, Arnold's and Becham's is/was pinpoint. Most of the time they put it into dangerous areas that result in chances. In this area, I do not see how Arnold could possibly be any better than he is at this time; his consistency in crossing is ridiculously high. It is top class and, I think, at the pinnacle level. I would say they are both at the peak of crossing ability, and so are equal in this area.
In terms of freekicks, I don't think there is enough evidence really to determine whether Arnold is worse or equal to Beckham. The two freekicks I have seen Arnold take have both ended in goals, so he looks like he has some ability, but there is not enough evidence yet to determine his level in this area. Beckham was at the peak level of freekick taking.
Dribbling-wise Beckham was not especially gifted; he was good, but I would not say that it was a notable aspect of his. Arnold is similar in his aspect. Both can beat their opponent, but they are not like Hazard etc.
I think sometimes people forget that Arnold is arguably the best right-back in the world at the moment. This is not just some random player, so I do not think it is ridiculous to not believe the gap is all that great in terms of ability,
Correct on all counts. I remember Brain Reade of the Mirror jumping on the 'show pony' wagon, slagging Becks off for everything from his mrs to his sarong, conveniently forgetting he was always the first on the training pitch and the last off it. Fergie saw his dedication to football slipping, hence the boot incident and the transfer, but for the vast majority of his career he was the absolute model professional.
They seemed to want to have their cake and to eat it too with Becks, saying he was never all that talented and also more interested in the celeb lifestyle and having his name in the papers than football. So which was it? Because if he was wasn't a particularly innately talented footballer and didn't do any work how the hell was he so essential for the greatest club side in England and the national team?
As to the comparisons with TAA I think we may find TAA to be the more innately talented of the two, and he's doing great things at a very young age, but Becks made himself an essential, talismanic player for club and country through hard graft and he was a truly great player for a number of years. You can't rule out TAA having a sensational career and eclipsing pretty much every English legend of the past, but he isn't there yet for me.
This shouldn’t even be a thing. 
Beckham > TAA end of. Just shows the media bias towards Liverpool, unreal.
Beckham > TAA end of. Just shows the media bias towards Liverpool, unreal.
Give over!
The stats for dribbled past is higher than quite a few right-backs in Europe, but I wonder how much that is to do with spending time so high up the pitch, where it is easier to be dribbled. In all other areas, he seems pretty similar to other right-backs, apart from tackling and Wan Bissaka (who I think is top tier in terms of tackling, and arguably the best defensively when he is on his game).
When you look at his Champion's League stats, it drops more in line with other notable right-backs. I don't know whether they did, but is it possible that they played differently in the Champion's League to the Premier League?
Not saying he is an outstanding defender, but I do think he is good. Of course, he still has stuff to work on in terms of defence, but if he managed to improve and become a top-class defender while maintaining his attacking output, he would arguably be the best ever.
When you look at the stats of some of the wing-backs that are considered as the best ever, they tend to be exceptional in either attack or defence, while still being good in the other.
Roberto Carlos got 10 assists and 5 goals in one season, but he was not notable for his defending. Cafu was incredible defensively, but his attacking output at 6 assists and 1 goal in one season. Ashley Cole peaked 5 assists and 4 goals, but his defensive stats are high across the board.
Different eras, different positions and different teams.
Can’t really compare other than to ask who was the best crosser or the best free kick taker?
For me it’s Beckham at this point because he was consistent over his entire career. There’s only 2 seasons of data yet for TAA so a bit premature
Can’t really compare other than to ask who was the best crosser or the best free kick taker?
For me it’s Beckham at this point because he was consistent over his entire career. There’s only 2 seasons of data yet for TAA so a bit premature
@Untd55 defensive stats are some of the most pointless stats in football, really. They depend so much on team's playing style. His positioning, for example, is something that is something that is untranslatable to numbers, and it's quite poor. That said, he's definitely worth reshaping a team to cover for his defensive weaknesses, just like Klopp did.
Roberto Carlos & Dani Alves, who are pretty much the best examples of attacking wingbacks, were better defensively than A&A, although it was definitely not one of their strengths. I'd say that Marcelo is probably the best comparison in terms of the attacking/defensive balance, although his attacking skillset had more variety. Keep in mind that I compare him to the best ever players in those positions at the peak though and A&A is just starting out, which is quite scary.
The stats for assists for early 00's-late 90's are usually not that reliable, I'm not sure that those are Cafu's peak numbers, for example. Alexander-Arnold's final ball is better that Cafu's, but I'd still take Cafu as a wing presence over him (hold-up, dribbling etc.).
Roberto Carlos & Dani Alves, who are pretty much the best examples of attacking wingbacks, were better defensively than A&A, although it was definitely not one of their strengths. I'd say that Marcelo is probably the best comparison in terms of the attacking/defensive balance, although his attacking skillset had more variety. Keep in mind that I compare him to the best ever players in those positions at the peak though and A&A is just starting out, which is quite scary.
Why are there so many awful threads at the moment? Just because Trent can cross, take freekicks and pass a little. May as well have had a Charlie Adam vs Beckham thread in that case
I don't think that Beckham gets the credit that he deserves and I think a lot of that is down to his life off the pitch. He was a brilliant player and clearly one of the integral pieces to your club winning everything in the 90s but I must admit, I didn't realise just how good he was. I'm not sure whether that's due to the fact that less matches were aired during his career than they are now or just because I was a lot younger and didn't appreciate what players like him brought to the game but watching some of his football back now, is breathtaking.
TAA is on TV every week and even if you're not a Liverpool fan, you'll see him more than non-united fans saw Beckham. I don't think he's being compared with Beckham due to recency bias, I think it's due to exposure and we see more of TAA playing than we ever did of Beckham.
I'm biased and think that TAA is class but I can't accurately say that he's better than Beckham because I didn't see Beckham play week in week out like I do with TAA.
TAA is on TV every week and even if you're not a Liverpool fan, you'll see him more than non-united fans saw Beckham. I don't think he's being compared with Beckham due to recency bias, I think it's due to exposure and we see more of TAA playing than we ever did of Beckham.
I'm biased and think that TAA is class but I can't accurately say that he's better than Beckham because I didn't see Beckham play week in week out like I do with TAA.