Liverpool manager Arsen Slot insists he has no concerns over the futures of Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold despite all three being out of contract at the end of the season.
The trio, who have been key players in the club's success over recent seasons under the guidance of previous manager Jurgen Klopp, will be free to enter pre-contract talks with clubs abroad from start of new year.
Attacker Salah has long been linked with a move to the Saudi Pro league, while reports suggest that right-back Alexander-Arnold is reported to be on the radar of European champions Real Madrid and Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain.
Defender and captain Van Dijk revealed last week that he is in talks to extend his stay at the club he joined in 2018 from Southampton.
Liverpool have started the season well under new coach Slot and are currently second in the Premier League, one point behind leaders Manchester City having lost just once in nine games.
They have also won all three of their Champions League fixtures so far as well as reaching the League Cup quarter-finals – which sees them taking on league strugglers Southampton at St Mary's Stadium – having disposed of Brighton in the fourth round on Wednesday.
“For me the contract situation could become a problem if the players don't perform as well as they do at the moment,” Slot said ahead of their second game in a matter of days against the Seagulls this weekend.
“Of course it's not sure that if, if, if they perform not as good any more that it has anything to do with their contract situation.
“At the moment all three of them are in a good place, all of them perform really, really, really well and there are ongoing discussions, as Virgil said, with the people he has to talk with, and that's not me as you know. I talk with him to him about other things.
“Let's wait and see but all what he said is completely right in that he doesn't exactly know what the future will be as long as he doesn't sign the contract yet.”
Salah, whose late goal earned Liverpool a point at title rivals Arsenal last weekend, said back in August that he plans to see out the final year of his contract before deciding on his future in 2025.
“Before the season, I was just like, ‘I’ve got one year left so let’s just enjoy it and don’t think about year-old the contract now’,” the 32-year-old told Sky Sports.
“I don’t think about anything and I really just enjoy it. I don’t want to think about next year. I don’t want to think about the future, just ‘OK, let’s enjoy the last year [of my contract] and we’ll see’. The most important thing is to take one day at a time and just be grateful to be here.”
Van Dijk, 33, revealed that he is in “discussions with the right people” over his Liverpool future as he moved into the final months of his current deal.
“I can say obviously discussions are ongoing, but I don't know, we will see what happens in the future,” he said. “My full focus is on Liverpool, wanting to win games that are ahead of me and nothing else.
“What the future will bring I have no idea at the moment. I can only tell you that discussions have been started up and we will see.”
Alexander-Arnold, 26, has been increasingly linked with a move to Madrid, potentially following in the footsteps of Liverpool greats Steve McManaman and Michael Owen in joining Los Blancos.
The England international said last month that he would like to become the first full-back to win the Ballon d'Or and become the “greatest right back ever” to play the game.
“Someone who changed the game. That's the main thing that I have,” Alexander-Arnold told Sky Sports when asked how he would like to be remembered in football.
“I just want that legacy of being probably the greatest right-back to ever play football, to be honest.
“I know that there's been many out there but, you know, I've got to reach for the stars, and that's where I believe my ceiling can go.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
If you go...
Fly from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Chiang Mai in Thailand, via Bangkok, before taking a five-hour bus ride across the Laos border to Huay Xai. The land border crossing at Huay Xai is a well-trodden route, meaning entry is swift, though travellers should be aware of visa requirements for both countries.
Flights from Dubai start at Dh4,000 return with Emirates, while Etihad flights from Abu Dhabi start at Dh2,000. Local buses can be booked in Chiang Mai from around Dh50
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
THE DRAFT
The final phase of player recruitment for the T10 League has taken place, with UAE and Indian players being drafted to each of the eight teams.
Bengal Tigers
UAE players: Chirag Suri, Mohammed Usman
Indian: Zaheer Khan
Karachians
UAE players: Ahmed Raza, Ghulam Shabber
Indian: Pravin Tambe
Kerala Kings
UAE players: Mohammed Naveed, Abdul Shakoor
Indian: RS Sodhi
Maratha Arabians
UAE players: Zahoor Khan, Amir Hayat
Indian: S Badrinath
Northern Warriors
UAE players: Imran Haider, Rahul Bhatia
Indian: Amitoze Singh
Pakhtoons
UAE players: Hafiz Kaleem, Sheer Walli
Indian: RP Singh
Punjabi Legends
UAE players: Shaiman Anwar, Sandy Singh
Indian: Praveen Kumar
Rajputs
UAE players: Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed
Indian: Munaf Patel
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
THE SPECS
Jaguar F-Pace SVR
Engine: 5-litre supercharged V8
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Power: 542bhp
Torque: 680Nm
Price: Dh465,071
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
