Liverpool head into the final international break of the season with half an eye on the summer transfer market.
The Reds look all set to win the Premier League once domestic football returns, despite suffering defeat in the Champions League and Carabao Cup final.
Beyond that, it is looking like being an enormous summer for Arne Slot and sporting director Richard Hughes.
Just how big will likely depend on what happens with Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Rousing The Kop understands Liverpool are planning a renewed push with Van Dijk and Salah during the ongoing international break.
But after a difficult week for Liverpool heading into the pause, Jamie Carragher has picked up on something new that’s worrying him regarding the duo.
Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
Jamie Carragher outlines fresh Liverpool contract worry
Throughout these contract sagas so far, it has felt as though the likes of Van Dijk, Salah and indeed Alexander-Arnold have been the ones holding the cards.
However, after Liverpool crashed out of two cup competitions within the space of a few days, Carragher has pointed out that there has now been a power shift. And that could be bad news.
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“Do you know what worries me, not from their point of view, more from the club’s point of view,” the Liverpool legend told the It’s Called Soccer podcast.
“Van Dijk and Salah have almost come out and said they want to stay. My feeling and worry is, it kept feeling like Salah and Van Dijk were winning the PR battle, because when Liverpool were top of the league, winning every game in the Champions League, talking about trebles, going to do this, going to do that. And in the last week, I hope this isn’t the case, but maybe the people at the club are going ‘is this is a little sign of things to come in the future. Is Salah being off form or is this the future of Salah’.”
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“If they don’t win as much, are they in a stronger bargaining position or are the club right to say, hang on, we think you’re only worth this,” Carragher added.
“I mean you’ve won the league, we haven’t won the the Champions League, you haven’t won the Ballon d’Or. I was actually thinking this means the club are maybe not going to shift the goalposts at all or maybe only slightly.
“Imagine Liverpool win the league, the Champions League, Salah’s the Ballon d’Or, it’s give him what he wants, all that again. So, no, I think the club will look at that and think our offer’s right.”
Why would this be bad news?
Clearly, it is better that Liverpool as a club hold the cards in any contract negotiation than whoever the player may be. The Reds have a specific way of doing things and do not tend to bend to demands.
In terms of Salah and Van Dijk, it was clearly more difficult for them to meet what the players were asking for when they were both on such good form with the team winning games.
However, just because Liverpool may ‘only’ win the Premier League this season, that does not mean the veterans will change what they are asking for.
Liverpool can have a stronger hand, but there is no real reason Van Dijk or Salah would climb down on what they are asking for.
As a result, any scenario which means the Reds are less likely to mee those requests must be construed as bad news. Carragher is right, and things are now starting to get very worrying indeed.