Two players should be Liverpool’s top priorities after Trent Alexander-Arnold, with whom the club is reportedly in contract negotiations.
After a successful transfer window and a promising start to the season, Liverpool has made significant progress. However, Jürgen Klopp’s ‘Liverpool 2.0’ project is currently in full swing, and there are still efforts being made to keep the core players who have made the team successful.
This week, rumors about Trent Alexander-Arnold’s potential new contract surfaced. According to TalkSport, the Reds are reportedly interested in giving the 24-year-old vice captain a contract extension.
On Tuesday, there was also an update on those negotiations; according to the most recent information, Alexander-Arnold is expected to stay at Anfield due to his loyalty to the team, as stated in Fabrizio Romano’s CaughtOffside blog. Ben Doak just agreed to a new, long-term contract at Anfield.
After Alexander-Arnold’s performances in Klopp’s box formation and Doak’s rise over the past year, that gives Liverpool fans comfort. However, the Reds should now focus on signing two other players to Merseyside.
Alisson’s exploits from the previous season were crucial in both Liverpool’s late push to secure Europa League football as well as their ability to grind out points under trying conditions. The Brazilian is an essential member of Klopp’s team and is often regarded as the greatest Liverpool goalkeeper in history.
There are still just under four years left on his term, which is extended to 2027, but by then he will be 33, which is still an excellent age for goalkeepers. Edwin Van der Sar, a former Manchester United goalkeeper, achieved the record for the longest Premier League minutes played without giving up a goal (1,113 minutes) when he was 38 years old. By praising Alisson for his outstanding play, Liverpool may send a strong message.
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A player who is in a slightly more precarious position with his contract is Mohamed Salah. Liverpool’s star forward, who is being pursued as a dream signing by clubs in Saudi Arabia, will have just one year left on his deal by next summer, and the impressive start he has made to the season will only encourage further transfer interest in his signature.
With hopes of winning the Ballon d’Or, and still a focal point in a new-look Liverpool attack boosted by Dominik Szoboszlai this summer, there is no reason for Salah to leave Merseyside amid the clear signs of progress made by Klopp’s side. Salah will be 33 by the time his contract is due to expire, but like Lionel Messi, it is likely that he will thrive beyond the expected declining years of a right-winger.
Salah remains a crucial match-winner for Liverpool, having turned playmaker in comeback wins against both Wolves and Newcastle, and he wouldn’t be replaced even if the Reds were to accept an offer from Al-Ittihad for $247m (£200m/€231m).
After Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister settled quickly into Liverpool’s starting XI, as well as optimism surrounding how Wataru Endō and Ryan Gravenberch could fit in, the Reds can now switch focus to securing key players to new long-term deals, before making the signings next summer that will look to restore the dominance that Liverpool enjoyed in its brightest Premier League era of all-time.
