Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold can take the right-back position to "another level", according to Brazilian legend Cafu. 

Cafu is probably the most iconic right-back of all time, famed for his eagerness to impact offensively and to date the only player to feature in three different World Cup finals, so if anybody knows anything about the No.2 position, it's definitely him. 

Having broken into European football in the late 1990s, Cafu was the archetype for the dynamic, marauding full-backs we see at practically every major club today - including Alexander-Arnold at Liverpool. 

However, Cafu believes the 22-year-old can take the right-back trade one step further and help make it a position comparable to strikers and wingers when it comes to competitions like the Ballon d'Or. 

He told The Daily Mail: "I can see the similarities [with myself]. He's not afraid to attack, defends well, good passer, hits a great free-kick. He will be a star at the next World Cup."

"He can take the position of right back to another level. I think we've started changing the narrative, the way people view full backs.

"It's not just the goalscorer who should be the best player in the world. It is totally wrong that some great players never won the Ballon d'Or because of their position. Nowadays, full backs should be seen as the main protagonists in the game."

GIVEMESPORT's Christy Malyan says...

It's certainly true that full-backs don't get as much credit as they deserve.

While forwards and attacking midfielders might provide the moments of magic that directly decide results far more often than full-backs, usually it is the players on the defensive flanks who set the mentality for the rest of the team. It's also a lot harder to win games when they aren't being consistently influential. 

This has been the case for some time now - even back in 1994, Jack Charlton said full-backs were the most important attacking players on the pitch - but perhaps Alexander-Arnold is the type of player needed to really get that point across to the masses and change perceptions of full-backs. 

It's not that he's necessarily superior to all others in his craft - although he is definitely one of the best around - but rather that he has the ability to conjoin modern-day right-back duties with direct goal contributions and moments of genuine brilliance at set-pieces. It makes Alexander-Arnold more noticeable than your regular No.2, which in turn shines a light on how significant the position is these days. 

In terms of Alexander-Arnold excelling at the next World Cup, though, there's still some way to go. Right now, he's not even England's guaranteed first-choice, with Gareth Southgate rotating between the Liverpool man, Kyle Walker and Reece James.