Liverpool are inching closer to the Premier League title, just as Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk are reportedly close to agreeing new two-year contracts with their current deals set to expire in just three months.
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According to a report from The Athletic‘s David Ornstein, both players and the club made a breakthrough in negotiations recently. The new deals could be signed, sealed and delivered in very short order with an official announcement to follow.
Speculation had been rife since last summer and only kicked into higher gear in January as Salah, 32, and Van Dijk, 33 (both players have birthdays coming up this summer), were then free to field offers from clubs outside of England — as Trent Alexander-Arnold has reportedly done, with his move to Real Madrid a foregone conclusion at this point. The situation surrounding Salah and Van Dijk always felt different, though, as the veteran superstars eye up one final deal at the top level before perhaps winding their careers down elsewhere.
What do new Salah, Van Dijk contracts mean for Liverpool?
Most importantly, it keeps the unquestioned leaders of the club in place and affords Arne Slot two more years to gradually transition the team into a new era rather than having no choice but to make wholesale changes this summer. Salah has been exceptional this season, even by his lofty standards, racking up 27 goals and 17 assists in the PL alone (to go with another 5 and 5 in other competitions) — perhaps the best single season by a player in PL history. Meanwhile, Van Dijk has been as important and ever-present as always, thus far playing all 2,790 minutes for a side with the second-best defensive record in the league (30 goals conceded in 31 games).
Locking up two of the best players in the world at their positions — two of the most important positions, at that — is a no-brainer for Liverpool, as both Salah and Van Dijk have demonstrated that even as they get on in age, they can still deliver Premier League titles and trophies just as they have throughout their legendary careers at Anfield.
