Why Liverpool’s squad worries go well beyond Salah, Van Dijk and Alexander-Arnold
Share:
The league leaders are heading towards a 20th league title under new manager Arne Slot, and yet a squad rebuild looms on the horizon. Some of Trent Alexander-Arnold’s more traumatic outings in a Liverpool shirt have tended to involve Real Madrid. Normally, however, it entailed trial by Vinicius Junior, a test many a right-back has failed over the years. If there are plenty of reasons to join Real, one is that he would only have to face the Brazilian in training.
![[Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold are out of contract this summer]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/06/16/newFile-9.jpg)
In the week Real attempted to sign Alexander-Arnold in January, his worst performance of the season felt ill-timed. Perhaps only the right-back and those closest to him know for sure if the distraction caused by Real contributed to his substandard display against Manchester United. Arne Slot, often a voice of reason, pointed out it is not the only difficult day even a player of Alexander-Arnold’s standard has experienced over the years. He afforded credit to the United double act of Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot, citing their status as Portugal internationals, even if the inconvenient truth is that neither remotely resembles a left winger.
![[Amad Diallo slots United’s equaliser through Andrew Robertson’s legs]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/05/18/2191970728.jpg)
Whichever, the week underlined the sense that, to borrow Mohamed Salah’s recent phrase, Alexander-Arnold is more out than in. He is not for sale in January. He is instead likelier to head for the Bernabeu on a free transfer in the summer. And if the focus has been on the potential exits, to the contract trio whose time at Anfield could be ticking down, at some stage it may shift to the succession planning. One possibility is that Liverpool, who have often excelled at the numbers game, end up having to commit much of next summer’s budget (and arguably last summer’s, given how little they spent then) to replacing three prize assets they will lose for nothing.
![[Liverpool need back-up for the impressive Ryan Gravenberch]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2024/12/02/15/Gravenberch.jpg)
