An “important” Liverpool star is close to signing a new contract that will keep him at Anfield until 2028, according to a new report.
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Liverpool extended their lead at the top of the Premier League table to seven points on Boxing Day as they came from behind to beat struggling Leicester City at Anfield.
Jordan Ayew had put the Foxes into a surprise lead in just the sixth minute when he fired home Stephy Mavididi’s low cross. Cody Gakpo then levelled right on the stroke of half-time with a curled finish from the edge of the penalty box, before second-half goals from Curtis Jones and Mohamed Salah sealed victory for Arne Slot’s side.
Speaking after the victory, Slot, who took over as Liverpool boss in May following the departure of Jurgen Klopp, refused to talk up his side’s title chances, despite their hefty lead over second-placed Chelsea and their game still in hand.
“Bit of a boring answer and as a manager you go game by game – you know how many games you have to play. So many teams have so much quality. If this happened in the Eredivisie I would say OK that is true.”
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The Dutchman also batted away questions about the futures of Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk – all of whom are out of contract at the end of the season and are yet to pen new deals.
“This is something for the players and [sporting director] Richard [Hughes]. It is not up to me to talk about those situations in public,” Slot said.
Van Dijk set to sign new Liverpool deal
While Slot may have been coy on his star trio’s contract situation, a new report from Spain suggests that one of those three players has now formally agreed to stay at Anfield.
The publication claims that Van Dijk seems to have “reached an agreement” on a new deal with the Reds that will see him remain on Merseyside until 2028. According to the report, the agreement could be “made official in the coming days.”
Van Dijk joined Liverpool from Southampton in 2018 and has since established himself as one of the club’s key players, as well as one of the best central defenders in world football. He was named as the Reds’ new captain last year following the departure of Jordan Henderson to Ajax.
Slot recently hailed the Dutch international for his role in Liverpool’s great start to the season. “We all see how good he still is and how much he contributes to our offensive style. What you don’t see, and I do see, is how important he is in the training sessions.”
“He is the most loud and he brings a lot of energy and quality into the sessions. What you see at the weekends is what I also see during the week and that is what you want to see. He is definitely our leader.”
This update, if accurate will come as a welcome boost to the Reds, who can then turn their attention to keeping Salah and Alexander-Arnold.