Something that is become evident is that Liverpool’s squad, despite being world-leading at present, is in a state of transition.
There are still the unsorted contracts of Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold, as well as rumours abound of approaches of Martin Zubimendi, Milos Kerkez and Omar Marmoush.
READ MORE: Liverpool move one step closer to SIGNING Omar Marmoush
Marmoush in particular is an interesting proposition, given the struggles that Liverpool have had at centre-forward this season.
Another interesting proposition at the position is Aston Villa’s maverick attacker Jhon Duran, who Liverpool have been linked with in the past and a recent Sports Illustrated report indicated that the Reds are still interested in the Colombian.
In a bizarre coincidence, however, Liverpool’s owners Fenway Sports Group (FSG) are now going to have to sign a different Duran altogether.
FSG's Duran situation
FSG also own Major League Baseball’s (MLB) Boston Red Sox. The Red Sox’s lead hitter this year is a man by the name of Jarren Duran.
Duran was Boston’s top run scorer this year, getting 111 runs from 191 hits, with a batting average of .285.
For the non-baseball fans reading, 111 runs puts him 8th in the entire MLB last season. It is a seismic number for a player who hasn’t been signed to a long-term contract.
And it is the contract that could become a problem for FSG. Duran is under a small $4.11m (£3.23m, similar to Ibrahima Konate's current deal) contract for the 2025 season but nothing is agreed beyond that, despite him being under team control until 2028.
In that case, Duran is eligible for salary arbitration. If the player and the team can’t agree on a salary for the seasons through 2028, they both propose a contract and take it to an arbitrator who sides with one or the other.
And, due to Duran’s run scoring numbers, FSG might be forced to dole out.
Some of the only players who scored more runs than Duran last season include MLB stars Shohei Ohtani ($700m contract through 2033), Aaron Judge ($360m contract through 2031) and Juan Soto, who signed a record breaking $735m contract through 2039 on Wednesday this week.
And although Duran is 28 years old and not at the star level of either of the three players mentioned above, he still has a chance to force FSG into a massive payday when the time comes.
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