Alexander-Arnold might find himself in and out of the team a bit at the start of the season.
While there were so many headlines around his move from Liverpool in the summer, it might have been easy to forget who Madrid’s existing right-back was.
It is six-time Champions League winner, four-time La Liga winner, Euro 2024 champion Carvajal – who finished fourth in the Ballon d’Or award last season.
Carvajal, 33, had recovered quicker than expected from a serious knee injury sustained last October.
But after starting against Oviedo, Alexander-Arnold was back in the starting line-up this weekend.
After that Oviedo game, boss Xabi Alonso said of his team selection: “It depends on what we need in terms of the game, the workload and the opposition.”
Carvajal is a more traditional right-back – and there is every chance he will start games if Alonso thinks he needs a better defender in there.
“Trent has had these doubters before, he’ll bounce back,” said ex-Liverpool full-back Stephen Warnock on BBC Football Focus earlier on Saturday.
“It won’t be an issue for him. He’ll take that as motivation to push him forward and make him come back as a better player.”
In a similar vibe to having Carvajal competing for his position at Madrid, Tuchel said he was “a big fan of Trent” but just had other options – choosing Reece James and Tino Livramento instead.
Getting a regular run of Real Madrid games might help him get back in that squad.