Rio Ferdinand thinks Reece James is better than Trent Alexander-Arnold, but what do the stats say?

With little over a month of football before the World Cup, it is clear who Gareth Southgate favours at right-back between Reece James and Trent Alexander-Arnold.

After dropping the Liverpool star from England's squad to face Germany last week, the Three Lions boss made no secret of his desire to start James on the right flank in Qatar.

At this stage, Alexander-Arnold is perhaps more likely to miss out on the World Cup squad entirely than start for Southgate against Iran — and this has baffled some fans, who rightly view the 23-year-old as one of the best right-backs in the world.

But for Rio Ferdinand, who watched James closely during Chelsea's emphatic 3-0 win against AC Milan on Wednesday, Southgate's preference is right on the money.

After the Champions League clash, the Manchester United legend insisted: 'On the ball, I believe James is equally as good as Trent, but defensively he is a notch up in one versus one situations.

'In my eyes, Reece is ahead right now, but Trent will come out of this spell and that could change.'

Ferdinand is not the only pundit or fan to weigh in on the debate, which is fast emerging one of the key subplots ahead of Southgate's final selection for Qatar.

Sportsmail has crunched the numbers and statistically analysed which right-back should be leading the race ahead of the World Cup.

Defending

Ferdinand criticised Alexander-Arnold's defending in comparison to James, so let's start there.

Despite Liverpool's heavily-reported horror show in defence so far this season, the Reds right-back has actually kept more clean sheets than James in all competitions, shutting out three teams as opposed to Chelsea's two.

And whilst the Blues defender boasts slightly superior tackling numbers at club level, making 2.3 tackles per 90 minutes compared to Alexander-Arnold's 2.1, the Stamford Bridge academy graduate is less productive in terms of winning possession.

On average so far this season, whether by way of interceptions, aerial duels or tackles, Alexander-Arnold has dispossessed opponents more frequently than his right-back rival.

The defender has won the ball back on 8.7 occasions per 90 as opposed to James' 7.9.

Although these metrics fail to take into account the Liverpool star's positional play — which is arguably his greatest shortcoming in defence due to the amount he marauds forward — the numbers suggest that there is little in it between the pair defensively.

However, on international duty, their individual defensive statistics paint an entirely different picture, which endorses Southgate's clear preference towards James.

With England, the 22-year-old star — who has played in two fewer appearances for the Three Lions than Alexander-Arnold — flaunts superior figures as a defender.

According to OPTA, Liverpool's No 66 only contributes approximately two-thirds of the tackles made by James under Southgate per 90 minutes, which shows why the England manager trusts him more on the right side of defence.

Moreover, James wins the ball back 5.3 times on average every match whilst sporting an England shirt, while Alexander-Arnold gains possession 4.5 times.

Although the Chelsea star is statistically better defensively for England, several Three Lions fans would still argue that the difference is negligible if Alexander-Arnold offers considerably more in attack.

Attacking

Perhaps in decades gone by, the analysis would have ended here. But defending alone is no longer the be all and end all when determining the value of a world-class full-back.

Since bursting on to the scene, both James and Alexander-Arnold have helped revolutionise the role of the right-back and typified the ever-evolving position with exceptional crossing and marauding runs.

Although England's depth on the right side of defence is well-documented, with Premier League stars Kyle Walker and Kieran Trippier also regulars in Southgate's recent squads, the pair have always been viewed a cut above the rest in attack at Chelsea and Liverpool respectively.

A deeper dive into the attacking statistics shows that Alexander-Arnold and James excel in different areas for their clubs.

The Reds full-back has produced 2.3 chances per 90 minutes under Jurgen Klopp, compared to James' 1.3.

It is no surprise from these figures that Alexander-Arnold averaged over 15 assists every season in all competitions between 2017-18 and 2021-22.

In an England jersey however, it is James who boasts superior numbers in this category, creating 2.1 chances per 90.

By contrast, the 23-year-old only makes 1.5 chances within the same timeframe.

But above all, one glaring comparison strangely demonstrates exactly why Southgate has favoured the Blues star: passing.

Ask most neutrals, and the general impression in football is that Alexander-Arnold is the best passer in the world amongst defenders.

His ability to thread through a killer pinpoint pass, or deliver a sumptuous cross-field through ball towards the opposite flank, is arguably second to none in the Premier League.

However, both for Chelsea and for England, James is the more accurate passer of the pair, at least on current form.

Every 90 minutes, he completes almost 15 per cent more passes than Alexander-Arnold at club level and 10% more for the Three Lions.

The percentages suggest that, whilst the Liverpudlian perhaps offers more moments of magic, James is the more consistent of the two in terms of passing and keeping control of possession.

Nevertheless, there is a major caveat surrounding this particular statistic. It does not take into account how risky or progressive each pass is.

As a renowned creative outlet, Alexander-Arnold is frequently expected to cut teams apart with his playmaking both for Liverpool and England, and this in turn leads to more high-risk passing on his part.

Therefore, it is difficult to penalise the right-back for his inferior passing record, as it is almost his role to take risks in an effort to open up defences.

As Southgate's side is struggling for goals — with England holding the worst scoring record in the Nations League's top tier — the Three Lions almost need fewer risk averse players in their squad.

Taking every metric into consideration, there is little to split James and Alexander-Arnold statistically, and Southgate should be giving the decision a lot of thought ahead of Qatar.

As it stands due to Walker's injury against Copenhagen on Wednesday, the England manager could even find a way to play the pair together in Qatar, as James has experience at the right-hand side of a back three in defence.