“At right-back, we’ve got two players: [Dani] Carvajal, who’s trained a lot more and is much closer to his level, and Trent [Alexander-Arnold], who has arrived from Liverpool and is very good for the level of the squad. We’ve got a lot of games, and we need this level,” he continued.

In response, club president Florentino Perez hired Alonso and sanctioned around €180million (£155m; $210.5m) to be spent on new players, including defenders Dean Huijsen, Alvaro Carreras and Trent Alexander-Arnold, along with exciting young Argentine playmaker Franco Mastantuono.

Real Madrid's activity in the summer transfer market has been as intense as it has been brief. While it is true that the executives led by Florentino

Coach Xabi Alonso said that he "won't look for excuses" after Real Madrid's hurried pre-season, while confirming that new arrival Franco Mastantuono could feature when the team host Osasuna on Tuesday.

Following recent experimentation with his positioning — he was given more opportunity to drift into midfield and help with build-up in central areas during Jurgen Klopp’s final year in charge at Liverpool — Alexander-Arnold largely returned to a more traditional full-back role last season.