Liverpool remain top of the Premier League after Sunday's 5-0 win over West Ham, but the turn of the year brings concerns about the future of a handful of Reds stars.
Premier League players with contracts expiring in the summer will be allowed to talk to foreign clubs from January 1. If they can reach an agreement, they could sign a pre-contract agreement ahead of a free transfer, essentially setting out where they will be. are playing their football news season.
Liverpool are no strangers to losing big players for nothing. Steve McManaman signed a pre-contract deal with Real Madrid in January 1999, while more recently the likes of Gini Wijnaldum and Roberto Firmino have left following the expiry of their Anfield deals.
Several players left Liverpool for free last summer, including centre-back Joel Matip and goalkeeper Adrian. Some even bigger names could seal a summer exit in the coming weeks, and Mirror Football has taken a closer look at who could be on the move.
Mohamed Salah is the Premier League's top scorer this season and you can certainly say he is showing Liverpool what they will miss if he is allowed to leave. However, a new deal is still some way off – at least if the striker's comments after the win over West Ham are anything to go by.
“No, we are still a long way from that,” the Egyptian international told Sky Sports. “I don't want to put something out in the media and people start saying things but nothing really [has] I've moved on, but for now I'm concentrating on the team and hopefully we win the Premier League.”
Reds boss Arne Slot admitted he could not control Salah's decision on his contract but was full of praise for the star after Sunday's win. Salah scored his 17th league goal of the season and also provided assists for Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota in the 5-0 win.
“We know what a player he is and we know what he can do,” said Slot. “But apart from that, he works very hard for the team, even when the other team has the ball and yes, we can only hope that he can continue to deliver these performances.”
Club captain Virgil van Dijk took over the armband following the departure of Jordan Henderson, and many will hope he continues in the role rather than departing this summer. The Dutch international is one of Liverpool's longest-serving players, having joined in January 2018 but will turn 34 in July.
Van Dijk has been reluctant to talk too much about a new deal. Ahead of the Boxing Day win against Leicester, he insisted there is “no deadline at all” when it comes to making a decision.
The former Southampton star is a regular at the back and has played every minute in the league, while some of his fellow defenders have missed games due to injury. If he does eventually leave – and Real Madrid appear to be fans – there will be a big void to fill.
Speaking of Real Madrid, right-back Alexander-Arnold remains linked with the Spanish giants. The defender has been spotted with England colleague and Madrid star Jude Bellingham, but Slot claims he is happy with the academy training.
“I don't think it's negative at all,” the manager said after Alexander-Arnold scored in the win over West Ham. “He's playing really well, he scored a great goal and the way he celebrated it probably says it all.
“I don't think I need to say too much about it. I am very happy with Trent, just like I am with Mo and Virgil. For me there is no difference. Maybe there is more happening in the media.” [with Trent] than the other two, but I'm very happy with the three.”
Former England striker Gary Lineker, who spent time in La Liga with Barcelona during his own playing career, suggested a move to Madrid would make sense. “He is very close to Jude Bellingham and would fit in wonderfully there. He would be a huge success,” Lineker told The Rest is Football podcast.
The fourth Liverpool star nearing the end of his contract has far less first-team experience. However, when Vitezslav Jaros was called up earlier in the campaign, he proved his worth.
Czech goalkeeper Jaros was in action against Crystal Palace when Alisson went down injured, while regular back-up Caoimhin Kelleher was absent due to illness. He was tested by the Eagles but stood firm, finishing the match with a clean sheet and helping to a 1-0 victory.
“We trust him a lot,” Slot said. 'He wanted to go [back this season] because he wanted to have playing time again. We said that at a club like this we also need a very good third goalkeeper. Today proves we were right, and maybe it was a nice moment for him to make his debut for Liverpool.”
Liverpool have a new goalkeeper this summer, with Giorgi Mamardashvili joining from Valencia. The Georgian is less than a year older than Jaros, who may decide to leave the nest in search of regular senior football, but he has stepped up when needed this season.
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