Arne Slot insists nothing will change for Liverpool on New Year's Day. That day marks the moment when key figures Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold can legally talk to foreign clubs about a move next summer.
The trio's contract expires at the end of this season and the lack of progress has served as a negative antidote to the successes on the pitch this season. But Slot believes that any negativity is limited to the outside world and that the people at the club are only focused on achieving their goals this season.
When asked whether anything will change on January 1, Slot said: 'If we did, this is probably not the time to tell you now. In general, I don't talk about contract situations here. It would be a surprise if I was the one to announce that one of them has been renewed!
'Keep asking, that's your job, but you probably won't get an answer from me. Obviously from January 1, maybe for you (media), things will change a lot, but they are in constant discussions with the club and let's wait and see what happens.
“As long as they continue to perform like this, the head coach is happy.”
Slot added that he doesn't feel any extra pressure given Liverpool are seven points clear in the Premier League, saying: 'You sit in front of the Liverpool manager so there is always pressure at this club.
'When there are one, two, three, four or five of us in the table, when you work at a big club like Liverpool, there is always pressure. And I think they were #1 halfway through last season too?
'So it is not surprising that a club like us is at the top of the league, but we know how many good teams there are in this league and they are also capable of winning almost every game. So there is no extra pressure, there is always pressure when you work at a club like Liverpool.'
Liverpool travel to West Ham on Sunday and will have to make do without Dominik Szoboszlai, who is suspended after receiving five yellow cards this season. Ibrahima Konate and Conor Bradley remain out, but the Reds hope they will be fit soon.
Slot said about the injured couple: 'They will not return for West Ham United. Then there is a week in between. Let's see how close they are then. That is difficult to say at the moment because they are not training with the group yet.
'Hopefully they will get closer to that situation in the coming days. But yes, Ibou has been out for maybe five or six weeks, Conor has been out for the same amount of time and they are competing with players who are completely fit and doing very well, so I have to make the right decision.'
Liverpool are also still closely monitoring the fitness of striker Diogo Jota after he missed almost two months with a chest injury. He is fit, but Slot does not want to bring him back in too much haste.
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