The Premier League trophy is on its way back to Liverpool but Reds have some thinking to do when it comes to recruitment
Liverpool are on the cusp of hitting their number one target for their first season under the management of Arne Slot but attention will soon turn to next season.
The Reds winning the Premier League is a matter of time but it hasn’t all be smooth sailing for Slot, who replaced Jurgen Klopp last summer.
Disappointing exits from the FA Cup and Carabao Cup limited Liverpool’s prospects of additional silverware before a Champions League exit at the hands of an imperious Paris Saint-Germain side left them with the sole focus of the league title.
Speculation about the futures of Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold may or may not have been a significant distraction this season but new contracts for Salah and Van Dijk will help to settle any concerns about 2025-26.
Yet two possible departures would leave Liverpool with a couple of puzzles to solve.
As the club prepared to announce Slot as Klopp’s successor last May, the new manager identified a quartet of crucial players around whom he wanted to build his vision.
According to reporting by The Telegraph, Slot told Reds owners FSG that Salah and Van Dijk were just two of the four key players at the core of his planning.
The other two might already be heading for the Anfield exit.
“[Slot] identified young players such as striker Darwin Núñez as critical to moving the team forward,” reported The Telegraph.
“While the Uruguayan has been widely criticised for his rawness in front of goal, Slot noted his extraordinary attributes and name-checked him as one of the many players he is excited to work with.
Darwin Nunez
“Liverpool are also planning for the future with skipper Virgil van Dijk, star striker Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold fundamental to Slot’s debut campaign.
“Contract talks with the trio are a priority as the club is determined to retain a healthy balance between experience and youth, believing the squad Klopp has left behind will not need extensive surgery.”
Two of Slot’s keystones could leave Liverpool
Alexander-Arnold appears to be bound for Real Madrid in the upcoming summer, ending a relationship that lasted more than two decades.
The right-back will leave his boyhood club as a Champions League winner and with two Premier League titles to his name.
Nunez hasn’t lived up to his transfer fee and Liverpool are expected to look to strengthen at centre forward in order to compete on four fronts next term.
The 25-year-old could be sold to make that possible and the Saudi Pro League has been touted frequently as a possible destination.
He too would depart with a Premier League winner’s medal and, it should be noted, his peak years still in front of him.
