Slot not worried about Liverpool futures of Salah, Van Dijk and Alexander-Arnold

Liverpool manager Arsen Slot insists he has no concerns over the futures of Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold despite all three being out of contract at the end of the season.

The trio, who have been key players in the club's success over recent seasons under the guidance of previous manager Jurgen Klopp, will be free to enter pre-contract talks with clubs abroad from start of new year.

Attacker Salah has long been linked with a move to the Saudi Pro league, while reports suggest that right-back Alexander-Arnold is reported to be on the radar of European champions Real Madrid and Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain.

Defender and captain Van Dijk revealed last week that he is in talks to extend his stay at the club he joined in 2018 from Southampton.

Liverpool have started the season well under new coach Slot and are currently second in the Premier League, one point behind leaders Manchester City having lost just once in nine games.

They have also won all three of their Champions League fixtures so far as well as reaching the League Cup quarter-finals – which sees them taking on league strugglers Southampton at St Mary's Stadium – having disposed of Brighton in the fourth round on Wednesday.

“For me the contract situation could become a problem if the players don't perform as well as they do at the moment,” Slot said ahead of their second game in a matter of days against the Seagulls this weekend.

“Of course it's not sure that if, if, if they perform not as good any more that it has anything to do with their contract situation.

“At the moment all three of them are in a good place, all of them perform really, really, really well and there are ongoing discussions, as Virgil said, with the people he has to talk with, and that's not me as you know. I talk with him to him about other things.

“Let's wait and see but all what he said is completely right in that he doesn't exactly know what the future will be as long as he doesn't sign the contract yet.”

Salah, whose late goal earned Liverpool a point at title rivals Arsenal last weekend, said back in August that he plans to see out the final year of his contract before deciding on his future in 2025.

“Before the season, I was just like, ‘I’ve got one year left so let’s just enjoy it and don’t think about year-old the contract now’,” the 32-year-old told Sky Sports.

“I don’t think about anything and I really just enjoy it. I don’t want to think about next year. I don’t want to think about the future, just ‘OK, let’s enjoy the last year [of my contract] and we’ll see’. The most important thing is to take one day at a time and just be grateful to be here.”

Van Dijk, 33, revealed that he is in “discussions with the right people” over his Liverpool future as he moved into the final months of his current deal.

“I can say obviously discussions are ongoing, but I don't know, we will see what happens in the future,” he said. “My full focus is on Liverpool, wanting to win games that are ahead of me and nothing else.

“What the future will bring I have no idea at the moment. I can only tell you that discussions have been started up and we will see.”

Alexander-Arnold, 26, has been increasingly linked with a move to Madrid, potentially following in the footsteps of Liverpool greats Steve McManaman and Michael Owen in joining Los Blancos.

The England international said last month that he would like to become the first full-back to win the Ballon d'Or and become the “greatest right back ever” to play the game.

“Someone who changed the game. That's the main thing that I have,” Alexander-Arnold told Sky Sports when asked how he would like to be remembered in football.

“I just want that legacy of being probably the greatest right-back to ever play football, to be honest.

“I know that there's been many out there but, you know, I've got to reach for the stars, and that's where I believe my ceiling can go.”