Virgil van Dijk‘s new Liverpool contract is expected to be announced in the near future, following the confirmation of Mohamed Salah‘s two-year extension.
With Salah’s new deal announced at 8am on Friday morning, many supporters have anticipated news of Van Dijk’s contract to follow.
But Liverpool are not expected to confirm the captain’s own two-year contract extension on Friday.
The Athletic’s James Pearce and the Liverpool Echo‘s Paul Gorst were among those refute claims that an announcement was already set.
This comes after a brief conversation with Van Dijk himself at the AXA Training Centre, where Liverpool will continue preparations for Sunday’s visit of West Ham in the Premier League.
Van Dijk is, however, understood to have agreed a two-year contract that will tie him to the club until 2027 and therefore an announcement will not be far off.
Earlier reporting around Salah and Van Dijk’s contracts this week insisted that their deals were yet to be finalised, though Friday’s developments show that may not have been the case.
It remains to be seen whether Liverpool will announce a new deal for Van Dijk over the weekend but it is only a matter of time before they do so.
Fabrizio Romano reports that “all details of the contract have been sealed [and] also approved by the lawyers,” and the Dutchman will sign “very soon.”
Liverpool are not, however, expected to agree terms with Trent Alexander-Arnold, whose contract is set to expire at the end of the season.
Alexander-Arnold is in the process of finalising a free transfer to Real Madrid, who will need to inform Liverpool when a deal has been struck with the right-back.
The vice-captain’s imminent exit has been met with fierce criticism from fans owing to his status as a Scouser and lifelong supporter himself.
But speaking after the news of Salah’s contract, Arne Slot expressed his belief that tying a player of the Egyptian’s calibre down to a new deal – along with Van Dijk in due course – will help land their transfer targets.
That could include a replacement for Alexander-Arnold, though there is a strong chance Conor Bradley is promoted to the role of first choice.
“It gives a positive vibe towards the club, maybe a positive vibe we might even not need, but it’s always good to have positive vibes instead of negative vibes,” Slot told reporters.
Mohamed Salah signs until 2027
He added: “I think it’s only positive, because if you want to sign new players or players that want to extend here yes or no, it’s always positive to see that one of our star players over the last seven or eight years made the choice to extend his contract.
“It also shows maybe how ambitious this club is, so not only Mo but also the owners and the ones that came in last season.
“We are really ambitious to keep performing the way this club has performed for so many years now.”
