Liverpool fans will be forced to wait on contract news over key trio Trent Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk into the final months of the season.
All three players are out of contract at Anfield in June, and with the January transfer window passing without an update, the club have now lost the chance to bring in any potential transfer fees.
The trio have played central roles in Arne Slot’s debut campaign, as the Reds top the Premier League rankings, and finished No.1 in the UEFA Champions League first phase.
MORE: All the latest Liverpool news | Premier League schedule for 2024/25 | Latest Premier League top scorer rankings
However, despite their collective importance, and Slot’s desire to retain them – the club remain locked in negotiations over salary terms and contract length.
Liverpool contracts latest: Trent, Van Dijk and Salah
Firm updates have been in short supply, with Real Madrid already putting forward a five-year deal to Alexander-Arnold, which has been reportedly matched in the key areas by Liverpool.
The deals offered to Van Dijk and Salah are rumoured to be two years each, with Van Dijk indicating the terms offered did not meet his expectations, whilst Salah has openly stated his frustration over the lack of movement from the Liverpool hierarchy.
Van Dijk appears to be the most likely to extend – despite rumoured interest from Real Madrid – and Liverpool icon John Barnes believes an exit for the Dutchman would hit the club hardest.
“We want them all to stay, but if you were to put them in order, I would say Virgil is most important,” as per quotes from BBC Sport.
“It would be great to have all three of them and the club have no control of that. But, I don’t think we could cope with losing Van Dijk.
“[On Salah] He’s going to slow down maybe next year or the year after. If you look at what he’s doing now, and give him a four-year contract, and think he’s going to be the same in three years, he won’t. The club has to make the right decision.
“The club need to look at the end of that contract and think will he have the same impact as he has now? It happens to everyone – [Ian] Rush, [Kenny] Dalglish, Billy Liddell… it happens to us all.”
Salah has scored 236 goals in 382 games for Liverpool since joining from AS Roma in 2017, and he is currently 4th on the club's all-time scorer list and 6th on the Premier League goal list.
MORE: UCL Round of 16 qualifiers: Clubs in 2024/25 knockout phase/playoffs and opponents