Liverpool midfielder Alexis Mac Allister expressed his "sadness" at the lack of a new contract offer this summer, but his situation is not just about performance level
Alexis Mac Allister during a Liverpool press conference.
Alexis Mac Allister during a Liverpool press conference.(Image: Jan Kruger/Getty Images)
Quite often, a footballer will look to avoid creating headlines. Their answers are kept to a familiar script. But not Alexis Mac Allister — at least not on Tuesday.
Speaking during a press conference, the Liverpool midfielder, 27, made clear his disappointment at the lack of a contract offer from Liverpool during the summer. He is "sad" that something didn't arrive, he said, and confused about why his teammates, Ryan Gravenberch and then Dominik Szoboszlai, were tied down, when he was not.
Liverpool, Mac Allister alleged, had told him that it "wasn't in a position" to offer anything to him in terms of an extension. Clearly, he feels that he was worthy of one.
It is not a huge surprise that he feels that way, even if it was refreshing to hear him speak so honestly about it. Mac Allister spoke last year about a lack of contract talks.
His father, meanwhile, has taken every opportunity to insist that Mac Allister is happy at Anfield, where he feels settled and content with the role that he has.
There is some important context to the lack of negotiations, however. For starters, he really struggled for most of last season, where, under Arne Slot, he looked a shadow of himself.
The early signs this season are that he has found some energy again, but any new contract coming before decisive proof of that would have been unwise.
Alexis Mac Allister in action for Liverpool against Nottingham Forest.
Alexis Mac Allister in action for Liverpool against Nottingham Forest.(Image: Simon Stacpoole/Offside via Getty Images)
Additionally, the Argentine will be nearly 30 by the time his existing contract expires. He still has another two years left, which means that tying him down is not an immediate need, but more than that, there are very few examples of players at Liverpool being handed extensions at his age.
In the cases of Gravenberch (24) and Szoboszlai (25), they are significantly younger and will therefore be able to perform for longer. It makes sense that they were the priority.
The reality is that Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk, who were offered lucrative new contracts past their 30th birthdays, were the exception, not the rule — just ask the likes of Gini Wijnaldum.
Luis Diaz was another who was sold — albeit for a big fee — rather than given an extension. It will be interesting to see whether the Colombian, a few months short of 30, can match his debut season for Bayern Munich again this term.
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"There wasn't any direct conversation with me — it was with my agent," Mac Allister explained. "I don't want to say things they never said, but what I got from my agent was that they were not in a position to renew me.
"It's really sad because we won a Premier League together, we've been through difficult times together, and I always give my best. We will see what happens, but of course, it makes me a little bit sad."
Brutal though it might be, even if Mac Allister returns to the excellent level of performance he produced during Liverpool's title-winning season, it might not be enough to secure an extension.
For now, he simply has to prove that turning down offers from elsewhere this summer was the right call.