The assertion "should just print the name of [the] file" is mistaken.
You seem to have conflated autocompletion (which occurs while typing, usually in response to the TAB key, which is prior to parsing a command which in turn is prior to invoking it) with filename generation (which occurs as a late phase of command invocation). A command consists of a number of words, any of which can be generated by command completion; the first word is not special in this respect. (What would be surprising is if an alias were expanded after filename generation. I suspect your minimal proof case is incomplete.) -Martin
