Liverpool are now at serious risk of losing Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold without compensation. All three players are vital for Arne Slot’s team, the three Liverpool captains, and yet, all three are running down the final season of their respective contracts. How and why the Merseysiders have allowed this to come to pass remains a mystery.
There has, of course, been plenty of speculation about what happens with each come next summer. But while Salah has repeatedly said he would love to stay at the club and end his playing days at Anfield and Van Dijk has recently revealed talks were underway for his new deal, no such encouragement has come regarding Alexander-Arnold. Why?
In fact, there have been claims in Spanish media that the England international has already informed Liverpool he would not be signing a new deal, with Real Madrid believed to have put him on top of their transfer wish list as they seek for a long-term successor for Dani Carvajal.
Such reports, especially coming from Spain, are rarely accurate. Kylian Mbappe, for example, did eventually join Real, but outlets like Marca and AS had him practically wearing the famous white shirt already two years before the transfer actually happened. Even Salah was keen to join Los Blancos a few years back, they said, and that never happened.
But, a careful look at the situation right now doesn’t inspire optimism when it comes to Alexander-Arnold signing a new contract. Salah is 32 and Van Dijk is 33 years old, and while they’re still players of sublime quality, they aren’t exactly young prospects and other top clubs, seeking to build their teams for the future, probably won’t be throwing vast amounts of money their way to try and sign them. All they can hope for (unless they go to Saudi Arabia) are reasonable terms.
But it’s quite different for Alexander-Arnold. At the age of 26, his playing characteristics are rather unique. He has often been criticised for perceived defensive weaknesses, but even that has improved notably this season. His passing range and accuracy is right up there with, for example, Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne, and his right foot is extremely capable of finding not only teammates in promising positions, but the back of the net as well. He surely is a player a club like Real Madrid wouldn’t mind offering very lucrative terms to, especially if they sign him on a free transfer.
Another thing that might add concern to those hoping Alexander-Arnold wouldn’t leave Liverpool is his recent statement that he wants to be the first fullback to win the Ballon d’Or. The last player to have won that award that did not play for Real Madrid or Barcelona at the time, and his name wasn’t Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo, was Kaka back in 2007, 17 years ago. A strong belief has therefore arisen that a player must play for one of the two La Liga giants of he hopes to ever get hold of it. Real star Vinicius Junior is widely regarded as the prime contender in 2024.
But Alexander-Arnold joining Real Madrid is far from a guarantee his name would ever appear on that list, and he surely must be aware of that. There’s a reason no fullback has even won the Ballon d’Or, and the names of attacking players like Vinicius, Jude Bellingham, as well as Kylian Mbappe, would always remain ahead of his, and they’re all younger than him.
Also, the England international should arguably keep in mind the fates of several players who went from other top clubs to one of the two Spanish giants. Looking only at those who left Liverpool to take that path since the turn of the century, there are examples of Michael Owen, Luis Suarez, and Philippe Coutinho.
Interestingly enough, Owen was the last player to have won the Ballon d’Or while playing for Liverpool, in 2001. He joined Real Madrid three years later, and not only did he fail miserably there and left the Spanish capital after only one season, but that season proved a historic one for Liverpool, the one which ended with the famous Istanbul miracle and the Champions League triumph.
Suarez, on the other hand, was extremely successful following his move from Liverpool to Barcelona in 2014, winning the Champions League in his first season with the Catalan club. But he didn’t win the Ballon d’Or, and obviously, he was never the brightest star of that team.
No player ever shone brighter than Messi, and Coutinho can obviously be forgiven for not getting to such heights after he made the switch to Barcelona in January 2018. But the Brazilian’s career soon took a serious tumble downhill straight away, and much like with Owen, Liverpool got over his departure pretty quickly, winning the Champions League and the Premier League in the two years that followed.
Be that as it may, Alexander-Arnold’s chances of winning the Ballon d’Or at any point in his career don’t look better at Real Madrid than at Liverpool. And while, for example, a bout of poor form might be forgiven at Anfield, especially for someone born in the city of Liverpool, at the Santiago Bernabeu the pressure is significantly higher.
While there could, of course, be disagreements between Alexander-Arnold and Liverpool over the terms of a proposed new deal and leaving under such circumstances would, up to a point, be understandable, informing the club that he has no intention to sign a new contract under any terms, at this point already, could well come back to haunt him very soon.
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