Liverpool will need to recruit well before the start of next season, but will also meen letter a number of players leave to make room.
Andy Robertson of Liverpool celebrates scoring with teammates Curtis Jones, Alexis Mac Allister and Mohamed Salah
Andy Robertson of Liverpool celebrates scoring with teammates Curtis Jones, Alexis Mac Allister and Mohamed Salah(Image: Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
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Barring a boardroom intervention, it very much looks like Arne Slot will still be Liverpool head coach for the start of the 2026-27 season.
The Dutchman has one year left on his three-year deal and unless the reigning Premier League champions fail to secure Champions League qualification in the coming week, he is expecting to get a chance to put right the wrongs of what has been a disappointing campaign.
Slot admitted as much in his press conference on Thursday morning: “I don’t think I am deciding that alone by myself, but I have every reason to believe I am the Liverpool manager next season," he said. "First of all, I am contracted to this club and second of all, from all the talks we are having. That is my take on it."
Whether Slot continues in his role or the responsibility is passed to another man remains to be seen, but what is absolutely certain is that Liverpool will need to be active in the transfer market again this summer if they are to have a squad with the depth and balance required to compete for honours both domestically and in Europe.
The Reds spent a club-record £448m on new signings last summer but haver a squad that still requires significant engineering work to return to the levels of the previous title-winning campaign.
In order to achieve that aim, a number of current players will need to move on to pastures new and remarkably, the exits could run into double figures.
At least two players are already waiting in the departure lounge, but here is a breakdown of the 10 senior stars who could be on their way out of Anfield for good by the end of the month...
Mohamed Salah
Club legend Salah will bring the curtain down on his incredible nine-year Liverpool career against Brentford at Anfield a week on Sunday. The Egyptian only signed a new two-year deal 12 months ago, but a drop-off in form and output has resulted in the club and the player agreeing on an early termination of his deal.
Salah will be almost impossible to replace, but time waits for no name.
Andy Robertson
Vice-captain Robertson is another decorated Anfield hero, who has been at the club just as long as Salah. But he has had to share left-back responsibilities with summer signing Milos Kerkez this season and flirted with a possible move to Tottenham Hotspur in January.
The Scotland captain is out of contract next month and at 32, is ready to take on new challenge elsewhere.
Alisson Becker
Like Salah and Robertson, Alisson is another double Premier League winner and Champions League hero. He is also widely regarded as Liverpool's best goalkeeper in the past 50 years. But injuries has disrupted his run in the team and although he very much remains first-choice 'keeper, reports have claimed that the Brazilian international is closing in on a move to Juventus this summer.
He is another player who would be extremely difficult to replace.
Curtis Jones
Currently, the only senior Scouser in the Liverpool squad, Jones is now 25, but despite making 32 Premier League appearances this season, he is yet to truly cement a berth in the Reds' midfield as his own. Recently deployed by Arne Slot as a makeshift right-back, Jones is likely to prefer operating in his native position and as a result, could look to move on at the end of the season.
The Academy graduate will have one year remaining on his contract at the end of the season and has been linked with a move to Inter Milan. He is also a saleable asset, meaning that any transfer could help bring in funds to reinvest in new players.
Joe Gomez
Gomez is Liverpool's longest-serving player, having moved to Anfield from Charlton Athletic in 2015. But despite being a mainstay of the 2019-29 Premier League title-winning side, he has often been the Reds' utility man, rather than an established first-team starter.
A loyal servant for over a decade, Gomez could have left the club at the start of the season before a deal for Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi collapsed on transfer deadline day. And with just 12 months left to run on his current deal, the 28-year-old recently admitted that his future is uncertain.
"I don’t know is the honest answer. I’ve only got a year left on my contract, so I don’t know," he told the ECHO after Liverpool's 1-1 draw with Chelsea. "Whatever’s meant to be will be, but I’m so grateful to have had this time here at this club. I always will be grateful to have had 11 years at a place like this. All I can do is be thankful and we’ll see."
Alexis Mac Allister
At 27, Mac Allister has already achieved more in his career than most players could hope to in their entire professional footballing lives, but that doesn't mean he is untouchable.
A World Cup winner with Argentina and a Premier League champion with Liverpool, the midfielder was often the glue in the Reds' engine room when they won the title, but his form has dropped off a cliff this season. With Liverpool routinely outrun in midfield, this is one area where they will surely be looking to strengthen for next season, and if a heavyweight star does arrive, it could be Mac Allister who pays the price with a transfer out of the club.
Like Jones, he is also a saleable asset, so a summer move cannot be ruled out.
Wataro Endo
Japanese midfielder Endo was 30 when he joined the club and that was almost three years ago. He was unfortunate to suffer a serious ankle ligament injury against Sunderland that required an operation, ending his season early, but could he have already played his last game for the club?
Endo will be targeting a return for this summer's World Cup, but with his opportunities at Liverpool routinely limited, it could be time to move on to a new challenge. His current deal runs until 2027.
Federico Chiesa
Much excitement surrounded the arrival of Juventus star Chiesa in August 2024, but despite being something of a Kop cult hero, in reality, he has just joined the small group of Italian footballers who have all failed to make a true impact in the red shirt of Liverpool.
Clearly not fancied by Slot, a return to Italy this summer feels highly likely.
Harvey Elliott
Had everything gone to plan, Elliott's official status as no longer a Liverpool footballer would already be all but confirmed. His loan move to Aston Villa at the start of the season was supposed to see the Europa League finalists complete an obligation to buy him for £35m. But for whatever reason, Unai Emery has chosen not to play Elliott enough to trigger the deal and he will return to Liverpool at the end of the season having wasted 12 months of his life at Villa Park.
The idea that his Anfield career will be reignited seems a bit fanciful, however, given that Slot was happy to put him out on loan in the first place, so a summer exit elsewhere is very much a possibility.
Kostas Tsimikas
The 'Greek Scouser' wrote himself into Liverpool folklore by scoring the winning penalty in the FA Cup Final against Chelsea in 2022 and was a Premier League title-winner last season, but he has always played second fiddle to Robertson, and when Kerkez was signed for £40m in the summer, a loan move was agreed to AS Roma.
With Robertson set to depart, Tsimikas could return as a back-up for Kerkez, but would the 30-year-old be content with that and more importantly, do Liverpool need a stronger option who can put more pressure on the Hungarian to perform at the highest level? A lot could depend on what transfer business the Reds do at the start of the season.
He could be a money-saving squad option in a surprise comeback.