Suddenly, that £20m fee that Real Madrid are said to be willing to pay for Trent Alexander-Arnold this month seems a bit steep.
Of course, tongue is firmly in cheek with that comment. But his performance on Sunday made it harder to complain about the theory that the Spanish champion's charming offense has planted a seed of doubt or distraction in Alexander-Arnold's mind.
Roy Keane joked on Sky Sports: “Trent's defense is like schoolboy stuff… talking about going to Real Madrid, after this he's going to Tranmere Rovers.” Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher later added: “Horrible, he's not in the races.” Maybe you need to leave.
Such taunts came on either side of many bouts of frustration at Anfield. Fans in the Kop reported supporters climbing on Alexander-Arnold's back with every loose pass, while one to the right of the press box was heard shouting: “If you don't want to be here, fuck off.” “.
Verbally abusing your own players like that is a step too far but, although that particular gentleman in the main stand was in the minority, complaints could be heard throughout the stadium all afternoon. “Get him out,” another was heard several times, directed at the bench.
The frustration wasn't limited to the stands either, as captain Virgil van Dijk was seen shouting at Alexander-Arnold on more than one occasion. To be fair, the Dutchman was complaining about everyone: Liverpool's performance across the board fell compared to this season's standards.
Trent Alexander-Arnold endured a miserable night against Man United as Liverpool drew 2-2
Both United goals came from attacks down the left, with Alexander-Arnold struggling
A whopping 53.8 per cent of United's attacks came down Alexander-Arnold's flank (compared to just 28.1 per cent on the other side), with Diogo Dalot excellent in particular. Both goals came from the left, Lisandro Martínez and Alejandro Garnacho exposing space.
Clearly, the Reds' right-back was in the spotlight. Another statistic was even more damning. The Reds right-back did not win a single duel during his time on the field, but Conor Bradley won his first when he came on as a substitute.
Northern Irish youngster Bradley also nearly won the match in the dying embers after slipping past a defender and then trying his luck. What a narrative that would have been.
However, boss Arne Slot was in the minority in his opinion of Alexander-Arnold, and when asked if his performance reeked of distraction, he said: “I don't believe in that stuff.” Nine out of 10 people will say that it affected them but I'm the one who tells you that it didn't.
“What affected him is that he had to play against Bruno Fernandes and Dalot, two Portugal starters who are great, great players. We have a fantastic player here in Diogo Jota and he usually doesn't play for Portugal, so that tells you how much quality United has.
'It was clear that Trent had some tough times… as did we as a team. Most of the games he has played for this club have been very good. “But I can't believe people tell me he's never played a bad game for this club, that's happened before.”
Fair points made by Slot. And it's probably unfair to criticize a performance too much. It wasn't like he scored a couple of own goals or let the team down with a red card. After all, it was Alexander-Arnold's searching cross that led to the penalty that made it 2-1.
But the fans' frustration was not with the deflected passes, but with the mediocre defense. Many times he took too long to close his man, often chasing the shadows of Dalot, Fernandes et al.
Liverpool manager Arne Slot insisted the 26-year-old was not distracted by the news of Real Madrid's £20m bid this week as his contract at Anfield expires at the end of the campaign.
Gary Neville (right) suggested Alexander-Arnold may feel disrespected in this country.
If Bradley hadn't missed the last month with a hamstring injury, he might well have arrived much sooner. Some fans pointed the finger at Slot for keeping Alexander-Arnold around for so long when he was clearly struggling. He was also often isolated and did not receive enough help from others.
Obviously, focusing on and examining your performance makes it seem worse than it was. It was bad, that's a fair verdict, but it was by no means the catastrophic disaster that some in the stands made it out to be.
Gary Neville put it well on Sky when he talked about how Alexander-Arnold is viewed in this country. “He probably feels that in this country he doesn't get the respect he deserves,” said the former right-back.
“I have been critical of his defensive performances. If someone came for me, I would never leave my club. That doesn't mean he was right.
The 26-year-old will recover from this bad day at the office, but the problem he has now is that, as this saga continues, fans will criticize him for things that other players may have a free pass for.
It's reminiscent of a clip from Gordon Ramsey's Hell's Kitchen, where the TV chef loses his cool at a contestant and calls him an “idiot,” only to offer words of encouragement to another foodie for making the exact same mistake.
This Alexander-Arnold to Real Madrid story is still in its infancy, but it already seems like the Scouser is losing control of the narrative.
He needs to go out and remind fans of his love for the club (denying all accusations of not trying and trying to silence the noise) or, as he has done for most of his career, speak up on the pitch.
At the moment he is doing neither and the fanbase is in a state of unrest. There is a Premier League title to win and Liverpool can't let things like this get in their way.