Chelsea have been urged to sign ‘top-class’ Trent Alexander-Arnold in January following a frustrating start to his Real Madrid career.

Alexander-Arnold completed a dream move to Madrid last year, ending a 21-year spell at boyhood club Liverpool in which he won two Premier League titles and the Champions League.

The England international featured in a little over half of Real Madrid’s league games last season as the Spanish giants endured a rare trophyless campaign.

Competition at right-back only increased over the summer with the arrival of Denzel Dumfries from Inter Milan and Jose Mourinho is currently playing midfielder Federico Valverde in that position.

As a result Alexander-Arnold appears to be third choice and has only earned four starts this season, with his lack of game-time raising speculation over his future at the Bernabeu.

A return to Liverpool has been raised as a potential possibility given his former club’s issues at right-back, but Glen Johnson has urged Chelsea to bring the 28-year-old to Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea’s first-choice right-back, club captain Reece James, is expected to be out of action until at least mid-January after undergoing knee surgery last month.

‘Trent Alexander-Arnold will definitely be frustrated playing such a small role at Real Madrid this season,’ ex-Liverpool and Chelsea defender Johnson told SeatPick.

‘Before he went to Madrid, he would have planned on nailing down his spot at right back there, and then they brought in a new right back the summer after he arrived, which will have only frustrated him further.

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‘Trent is a top-class player, and no top-class player wants to sit on the bench, he wants to be playing regular football.

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‘I think he should be a target for Chelsea in January. I think they could get him on loan, and it would be perfect for both parties. Chelsea needs a right back at the moment, and Trent needs minutes under his belt.

‘We’ve seen how effective he can be in the Premier League, and if Xabi Alonso could get him back to his best, it would be a great deal to solve a problem for Chelsea and to get his career back on track.’

Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard recently said he would welcome Alexander-Arnold back to Anfield despite the fact his exit upset many fans.

‘The decision he made and all the stuff around it, do I think it would be the right thing for Liverpool’s group now and the supporters? I’m going to sit on the fence and say I’m unsure,’ Gerrard told The Overlap Daily.

‘Ability-wise, talent-wise, what he’d done for Liverpool in terms of the success, I would say yes, but the ending and that still being a little bit raw…

‘I would, yes, myself personally. So I won’t sit on the fence because that’s poor from me. I would, yes.

‘Do I think it’s the right thing for this group now, this manager now and where Liverpool are at right now? I’m unsure. Does he make the Liverpool team and squad better? He does, 100 per cent.

‘It’s tough, it’s tough. I would, yes, and ability-wise, yes, I’m just not sure it’s right for the group, right now.’

Liverpool are fourth in the Premier League heading into the November international break, one place and two points above Chelsea.

Alexander-Arnold’s current club Real Madrid are second in La Liga, having recently closed the gap on leaders Barcelona to just three points with an El Clasico win at the Nou Camp.