Trent Alexander-Arnold has fallen to third-choice right-back at Real Madrid while seeing his career at a crossroads amid links to a shock return to Liverpool next year

The vast majority of Liverpool fans polled are in favor of bringing Trent Alexander-Arnold back to the club, should the option become available amid his miserable time at Real Madrid, according to a poll conducted by Liverpool.com.

Alexander-Arnold has fallen to a new low at Madrid under Jose Mourinho, while failing to be the third-choice right-back behind Federico Valverde and Denzel Dumfries. This past weekend, Alexander-Arnold came on late in their game against Barcelona and showed little emotion after their win.

After Kylian Mbappe scored an 87th-minute winner in the game, Alexander-Arnold was the only substitute to not run over to celebrate with the team, only adding to speculation that he may look to leave the club.

While Alexander-Arnold has struggled to make an impact in Spain, Liverpool has also failed to find a replacement for him.

Conor Bradley has filled in admirably, but is not the dynamic attacking threat that the club has missed in Alexander-Arnold. Brady has also missed the past 10 months through injury.

Jeremie Frimpong has struggled at both ends of the field, failing to live up to his price tag and offering little offensively, while fans have not been impressed by his defensive efforts. The Dutchman has also missed significant time due to injuries.

The Reds appear to have found a short-term replacement at the position in Ronald Araujo, who has impressed at right-back and is equally effective going forward and defensively. But his preferred position is as a center-back, with some fans eager to see him play there, and being a potential long-term player for the club should Virgil van Dijk leave at the end of the season.

Liverpool.com asked fans in our WhatsApp channel if they'd like to see Alexander-Arnold return, with 3,400 of the more than 4,000 respondents stating they would like to see him back with the Reds.

Now 28 years old, Alexander-Arnold missed out on a place at the World Cup with England this past summer after only appearing sparingly for Madrid.

Had he stayed at Liverpool, he would have almost certainly made the squad - but potentially been set to take over as captain at the Reds.

Van Dijk's contract is set to expire at the end of the season, with Alexander-Arnold being vice captain under him - a role which was taken by Andy Robertson and now Dominik Szoboszlai, with Alisson and Joe Gomez also listed as vice captains.

Appreciating Alexander-Arnold's value may be difficult. Liverpool had to essentially let him walk for free, but agreed a $15 million deal with Madrid so that he could join for the Club World Cup - before he was set to join as a free agent.

A player of his talent could be worth as much as $80 million on the open market - a figure the Reds would surely not look to pay after they let him leave for a fraction of that just two years ago.

The Reds could face competition should be become available, with Chelsea and Arsenal seen as potential landing spots for him.