Virgil van Dijk is reportedly willing to sign a new contract at Liverpool despite rejecting the club's first offer to renew.
The Reds captain is into the final seven months of his current deal and, as things stand, will be able to negotiate a pre-contract agreement with foreign clubs from January 1.
Football Insider claims that Van Dijk's decision to reject Liverpool's opening contract offer was a negotiation tactic by the center-back and that it remains his preference to stay at Anfield.
There is said to be an apparent willingness from both sides for an agreement to be reached over a renewal, which is little surprise given how good Van Dijk, 34, has been this season and how much he enjoys playing for the club.
Van Dijk is one of three key players who are out of contract at the end of this season, with Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold in identical situations to their skipper.
Salah, 33, is also seemingly keen to stay at the club, and The Sunday Mirror reported over the weekend that the Egyptian was on the verge of signing a new contract until 2027 after the player and the club reached a compromise in negotiations.
Salah's financial demands were never an issue in talks, rather it was the length of the extension that the two parties were far apart on.
Liverpool was initially only willing to offer Salah a one-year renewal, while Salah wanted a three-year deal. Barring any last-minute hiccups, the Egyptian will apparently end up penning a two-year contract at Anfield.
Alexander-Arnold, meanwhile, has not had much to say about where he wants to be playing next season and beyond, and said in September that he had no intention of letting negotiations over an extension with Liverpool play out in public.
"I want to be a Liverpool player this season [as a minimum] is what I will say," the 26-year-old said. "I have been at the club 20 years now. I have signed four or five contract extensions and none of those have been played out in public - and this one won't be either."