Alexander-Arnold was injured on Sunday but dominated the build-up after an interview was published where he claimed Liverpool's titles under Jurgen Klopp meant more to them and their fans compared to City's superior trophy haul due to the 'financial situations' of both clubs.
Some City City players publicly knocked down the Liverpool defender, while Kyle Walker admitted the squad had spoken about the comments in the training ground.
But defender Manuel Akanji insisted that there was more bemusement among the City squad rather than a sense of using the comment as pre-match motivation.
"I don't think [it had an impact].
They probably tried [for it] to matter, but I don't think it affected us," Akanji said, visibly confused at Alexander-Arnold's position. "In the end we tried to go on the pitch and show our performance. It didn't affect me.
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