Jamie Carragher’s new Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk theory as contracts run down

Liverpool lost two important games in the space of four days as the Reds’ Carabao Cup final defeat to Newcastle followed their exit from the Champions League at the hands of PSG

Jamie Carragher has suggested that Liverpool’s recent Carabao Cup final defeat and Champions League exit could have a significant impact on Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk. The Reds’ 2-1 loss to Newcastle United at Wembley came hot on the heels of their 4-1 penalty shootout defeat to Paris Saint-Germain after a 1-0 loss on the night.

This double setback has dealt a blow to Liverpool’s silverware aspirations this season, especially after their early FA Cup exit in the fourth round with a 1-0 defeat to Plymouth Argyle. This leaves the Premier League as the sole trophy they can vie for in Arne Slot’s debut season.

Despite comfortably leading the Premier League – 12 points ahead of second-placed Arsenal with nine games remaining – club icon Carragher feels these cup competition losses could seriously affect Salah and Van Dijk’s contract negotiations.

Both key players’ contracts with Liverpool expire this summer, allowing them to engage in talks with clubs abroad until the end of the season. After that, they will become free agents, able to join any club without Liverpool receiving compensation.

Alongside Trent Alexander-Arnold, also free to exit in the summer transfer window with no fee, they’ve been a topic of intense discussion behind the scenes of the Reds’ league title push.

In an episode of It’s Called Soccer!, Carragher expressed his concerns for the stalwart duo, believing the “PR battle” of having multiple trophies to compete for was on their side for a while. But now, the ball is firmly in the club’s court when it comes to negotiating new contract terms.

The 47-year-old said: “You know what worries me, not from their point of view, more from a club’s point of view – I mean, Van Dijk and Salah have almost come out and said they want to stay now, of course they do.”

When questioned by co-host Gary Neville on the accuracy of this statement, Carragher explained: “I mean listen – Mo Salah’s been saying he hasn’t been offered contracts hasn’t he? What he’s basically saying is ‘if someone puts a contract in or it if they match my terms then I’ll sign’. But what those terms are we don’t know.

“My feeling and my worry is it kept feeling like Mo Salah and Van Dijk were winning the PR battle because Liverpool are top of the league, they had won every every game in the Champions League, there was talk about trebles, they’re going to do this they’re going to do that and in the last week you know [this hasn’t happened].

“I hope this isn’t the case, but maybe the people of the club are going, ‘Is this a little sign of things to come in the future? Is this Salah being off form or is this the is this the future of Salah’ – and if they don’t win as much are they in a stronger bargaining position to say ‘We want more’?

“I don’t know what they’re asking for, but are the club now right to say, ‘Hang on, we think you are only worth this [amount]. I mean you’ve [almost] won the league, we haven’t won the Champions League, we haven’t done that, you haven’t won the Ballon d’Or’.

“I was actually thinking, I think this means the club are maybe not going to shift the goal posts at all, maybe only slightly, if you end up winning the league.”

While the sting of the Carabao Cup defeat and the Champions League exit lingers for players and supporters alike, Salah and Van Dijk have remained silent regarding their contracts thus far – which is potentially a positive omen.

Recently, manager Slot acknowledged the lack of advancement in contract talks but mentioned the club’s readiness for any outcome. In February, he said: “We have some contractual situations that you probably don’t know about.

“But Trent, Mo and Virgil haven’t extended yet. So we are aware of the fact that we have to be sharp and ready for things that can happen.

“My life is mainly short term but we have so many quality people at this club that look at the longer term as well. You always have to be prepared for all the new things coming up.”

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