With Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold‘s contracts expiring at the end of the season, Liverpool have ‘reached an impasse’ in their “difficult” contract talks.
At the moment, everything is harmonious on the pitch for Liverpool. Nine wins in 10 games have allowed supporters’ anxieties to ease considerably, but worries remain over contracts.
Salah, Van Dijk and Alexander-Arnold all have deals that expire next summer and don’t appear to be close to agreeing new contracts.
Paul Joyce of the Times described the situation with all three as being at a “continued impasse.”
He added: “There has been contact between the club and the representatives of all three players, but talks have not found common ground.”
Meanwhile, the Telegraph‘s Chris Bascombe wrote that “reaching an agreement which suits all parties has so far proven difficult.”
Talks are said to be “ongoing” with all parties, with sporting director Richard Hughes overseeing.
All three are free to open talks with a foreign club from January 1, with Bosman transfers allowed to be lined up for next summer.
What have the players said?
Salah and Alexander-Arnold have remained quite coy when talking about their futures, but Van Dijk has effectively said he wants to stay.
Speaking to the media while on duty with the Netherlands in the last international break, the captain said: “At both teams, I am still Virgil van Dijk, the big leader, and I certainly want to remain that for the next two years.”
Meanwhile, in September, Alexander-Arnold explained: “I have always said I want to captain the club. That is a goal of mine, whether that happens is out of my hands.
“I want to be a Liverpool player this season (as a minimum) is what I will say. “The most important thing is always trophies. I want to win trophies.”
After Liverpool beat Man United 3-0 at Old Trafford, Salah mentioned his contract situation when speaking to Sky Sports, saying: “Nobody in the club talked to me yet about contracts, so I’ve said ‘OK, I’ll play my last season and in the end we’ll see’.”
Urged by Daniel Sturridge to stay at Anfield beyond the end of the season, Salah laid the pressure on the club to sort the situation out.
“It’s not up to me, nobody talked to me from the club, but we’ll see,” he said.
So, all three players are at an “impasse” it seems. What could happen is that one agrees their new wages and that will act as the first domino in getting the others to sign – we can hope.
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