Trent Alexander-Arnold's omission from England's squad to face Germany on Monday night will no doubt leave Jurgen Klopp baffled.
The Liverpool defender, 23, did not even make the 12-man bench for the 3-3 draw and his World Cup spot is now in doubt. That seems remarkable for a player who's won everything at club level and was named as the best right-back in the world just two years ago.
Alexander-Arnold's omission has left many pundits and fans confused, and Klopp's opinion on the matter will be interesting. When the talent was left out of Gareth Southgate's squad in April 2021, the Liverpool boss admitted he 'couldn't understand' the decision.
"I am a manager myself - I make decisions every day, every weekend, every midweek about team selections and squad selections," said Klopp last year. "We always make decisions that other people probably do not understand.
“I respect that Gareth makes his own decisions, of course, but I didn’t understand it because Trent Alexander-Arnold was in the last two seasons at least, let me say the season before and the season before that, the stand-out right-back in world football.
"That is the truth and at an unbelievable young age. I have no problem if my players get some criticism. They can get it from me, they can get it from other people, but that is the truth. He was the stand-out right-back in world football."
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Klopp added: "It is about how you want to play. That is the thing that Gareth has to make sure. He has [Kyle] Walker, an outstanding right-back who can play centre-back as well. Reece James - big talent... [Kieran] Trippier, who he knows better or longer, was.
"So that is the situation. It is his decision. It is about how you want to play. If you want to play against a deep defending side then, for sure, the crosses and the passes of Trent, I don’t know anybody who can do that like him. He defends on a really high level for us."
Since those comments, Alexander-Arnold's reputation has only grown. He helped Liverpool win the FA Cup and EFL Cup last term and was named in the PFA Team of the Year for a third time, as well as the UEFA Champions League Team of the Season.
Alexander-Arnold was recently named as the 14th best player in Europe by UEFA - the highest ranked right-back - and will be among the favourites to be named as the best right-back in the world, again, by FIFA in their upcoming awards ceremony.
It will be fascinating to hear Klopp's take on Alexander-Arnold's recent snub when Liverpool return to Premier League action against Brighton at Anfield on Saturday. England legend Gary Lineker is among those to make his feelings known about the situation.
"England’s most creative footballer, Trent Alexander-Arnold, [is] sat on the bench getting splinters in his a***," Lineker tweeted during Friday night's 1-0 defeat to Italy.
