Liverpool
I wasn’t happy at Liverpool – it was an opportunity I couldn’t turn down but I ended up cold, fed up and alone
Gabriel Paletta is 38 today and enjoyed an eventful career that include a £2m move to Liverpool.
In years gone by, if I had told you that Liverpool were interested in signing a player who had played a starring role alongside Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero for the Argentina side that won the 2005 FIFA U20 World Cup, was a FIFA Club World Cup runner-up at the age of 21, played at a World Cup and enjoyed seven-and-a-half successful years in Serie A, most notably with AC Milan, you’d be forgiven for getting a little excited at such a prospect.
Yet, believe it or not, Rafa Benitez actually once signed such a player for the Reds.
Surely with such a C.V. he would have proven to be one of the Spaniard’s masterstrokes at Anfield? Especially when informed he scored on his Liverpool debut in 2006 too?
But alas, no. It never worked out on Merseyside with the guilty player moving on after just one season, having only made eight appearances for Reds and cursing his decision to even make the move to Anfield in the first place.
So having thought to be something of a coup for Liverpool when signed in 2006 and actually gone on to enjoy a respectable career to date, where did it all go wrong for the Argentine under Benitez?
The defender first caught the attention of the Reds after starting all seven of Argentina’s games as they won the 2005 FIFA U20 World Cup and following an impressive season with Club Atletico Banfield, where the Argentines even altered their Copa Libertadores squad for the knock-out stages to include the teenager.
With competition in his signature rife, Liverpool wasted no time in agreeing a £2m to land Paletta, confirming his signing on February 14, 2006, with the defender agreeing a four-year deal ahead of linking up with his new team-mates that summer in time for the 2006/07 season.
Described by the Reds as a “strong, decisive and robust defender”, Benitez wasted no time in talking up his latest signing and compared him to some of the Spaniard’s most high-profile defenders following his arrival at Anfield.
“Paletta is very tough and he’s exactly the sort of player we need who will suit The Premiership,” he told the club’s official website. “When you talk about the Argentinian defenders I worked with in Valencia, Paletta is more like Ayala than Pellegrino.
“If you’re talking about Liverpool, he’s more like Carragher than Sami Hyypia. This is good because we will have a balance in the style of defenders.
“He is a defender with a lot of aggression and we’re sure he has a great future. He will learn a lot here, like Daniel Agger, and provide competitiveness in our defence.
“He has attracted a lot of interest from top clubs in Argentina like River Plate and Boca Juniors. River Plate even reserved a number six shirt for him, so we had to move quickly to sign him. We’re delighted to have done the deal now.”
Nicknamed ‘El Taladro’ (The Drill) in his homeland due to his no-nonsense defensive style, Paletta himself was excited to make the switch but admitted he had some way to go to justify being likened to his compatriot, Ayala.
“I think I’m ready for the move to England,” Paletta told the Sunday Mirror at the time. “It’s every South American player’s dream to play in Europe. It’s impossible to turn down the opportunity when it arrives.
“Roberto is a proven star and compared with him I’m only an apprentice. In my opinion Ayala is a monster. A massive player and a massive winner.
“I don’t fear moving into English football. I’m not arriving as a star. I’m just a young player hoping to make progress.”
Yet BBC Sport’s South American expert Tim Vickery couldn’t help but fear the move had come too soon for Paletta.
“In the 1960s Liverpool manager Bill Shankly sent the press on a voyage round giant centre-half Ron Yeats,” he wrote in February 2006. “Perhaps in a few months’ time current Reds boss Rafael Benitez will do the same trick with Gabriel Paletta.
“The young Argentine defender is built like an ox, and the journalists would take a while to circumnavigate him. But I wonder if it might be a journey taking place too soon.
“A strong, rugged, no-nonsense centre back, he caught the eye in both penalty areas, stopping goals at one end, scoring them at the other with his bulky presence and aerial threat.
“He would clearly be on the move before long. The question was where. And he clearly looked the kind of centre-back who one day will do well in Europe. The question is when.”
He continued: “Paletta is one of those complicated South American cases of a player whose registration is not wholly owned by a club. There are other investors involved, who typically prefer short-term profit to long term career development.
“He seemed certain to join local giants River Plate, who even reserved the number six shirt for him.
“In purely football terms, joining River is the obvious step to take. He would learn about the pressures of being with a big club. He would have to cope with the fact that River’s expansive style of play can leave their defenders exposed.
“And he could do all of this in his home environment, while preparing himself for the move to Europe.
“Instead he has skipped a stage. Finance has won over football. With just a year behind him Paletta has opted to move to a country with a different culture, language and football.
“Paletta gave the impression of a highly-promising defender who might need some more mileage before making the move across the Atlantic.”
Ultimately Vickery was proven right and Paletta paid the price, despite a promising start to his Liverpool career.
Handed his debut in a pre-season victory over Wrexham, he certainly made his presence felt in the Reds’ next friendly outing with a bone-crunching challenge on Crewe Alexandra’s Billy Jones just minutes after coming on.
A hard but fair tackle, it certainly caught Benitez’s attention.
“The language is still a problem for Gabriel, and he is having English lessons,” the Spaniard said after the game.
“But I think it’s fair to say there is no problem with his tackling.”
Handed his competitive debut in the Carling Cup against Reading, the Argentine headed home Jermaine Pennant’s corner to give Liverpool a 3-0 lead after just 50 minutes.
However, he almost prompted a late collapse from the Reds too, earning a booking for an aggressive challenge on Stephen Hunt with 15 minutes to go, with Andre Bikey heading home from the resulting free-kick as the Royals fought back in an eventual 4-3 win for Benitez’s side.
Starting in the next round against Birmingham City, he made his Premier League debut off the bench in a 4-0 victory over Wigan Athletic in December, before starting alongside both Carragher and Agger as Liverpool lost 3-2 in a Champions League dead-rubber against Galatasaray.
But his struggles to adapt to English football became abundantly clear in an infamous 6-3 defeat to Arsenal in the League Cup the next month, in which Julio Baptista scored four, and he was ultimately sidelined until the spring.
Writing for BBC Sport after that loss to the Gunners, Vickery pointed out that Liverpool had been warned.
“Gabriel Paletta’s problems at Liverpool should come as no surprise – and should serve as a warning to young South Americans in similar situations,” he said.
“There is a general rule when a player steps up a level, whether it be from juniors to reserves, from the reserves to the first team or from club to international football.
“Usually he will be OK if he can reproduce the quality of performance he was producing in the lower level.
“The problem in Paletta’s case is that this does not apply. He has to learn to defend in a different way.
“Banfield are a traditional but relatively minor Argentine club, who play in tight, cramped stadium. They are not under the same pressure to attack as one of the big teams.
“It means that back at home Paletta was defending much closer to his own goal. If the ball was played behind him, it was the keeper’s. A pair of holding midfielders swept up the danger in front of him.
“However, at Liverpool the defensive line is higher up the field.
“In a type of football much faster than anything he has seen before he is taking up an unaccustomed position – one which all the while threatens to expose his lack of mobility.”
He continued: “It is no wonder he has had problems. He has taken a leap which represents a dangerous risk at this stage in his career.
“Joining River would have been the perfect move. While staying in his own culture he would have learnt much more about how to defend in an attacking team. Make a success of that, and the doors to Europe are open.
“Paletta skipped a stage, and is paying the price.”
Benitez had seen enough with Liverpool making sure not to take a risk with Paletta again.
Making just three further appearances for the Reds, the first came as part of a makeshift side in the Champions League quarter-finals in a 1-0 second leg victory over PSV Eindhoven, having triumphed 3-0 in the first leg in the Netherlands.
His final two outings again came in makeshift backlines, either side of Liverpool’s Champions League semi-final second leg victory over Chelsea, as the Reds fell to defeat against Portsmouth and Fulham with their eyes firmly on a trip to Athens and the chance to again lift Europe’s elite prize.
However, he didn’t even make the bench for a final day draw with Charlton Athletic, still Benitez again rotating ahead of the Champions League final rematch with AC Milan, and come the summer it became clear his future lay elsewhere.
After a loan move to Levante failed to materialize, Paletta made a return to Argentina with Boca Juniors that August as part of the deal saw Emiliano Insua’s loan move made permanent.
Speaking of his decision to let the 21-year-old leave, Benitez conceded the move just hadn’t worked out.
“There is no point considering what I would have done had I known about the injuries,” he said. “But Paletta needed to be playing so it is best that he has gone to Boca.”
Having been so dismissive of his exit, maybe for Benitez he was just another transfer gamble that didn’t pay off?
However, when reflecting on his year on Merseyside, the Argentine admitted he should have remained patient but had to leave because he was unhappy at Liverpool.
“I got fed up and went home,” he told La Repubblica in 2014. “How could I refuse (Boca)? There was the Bombonera, the chants of ‘La Doce’, it was a dream for me.
“I’ll admit I should have been more patient but I wasn’t happy at Liverpool.
“I was alone. I only remember the cold. In a year, I never went out for dinner with a team-mate.”
Had Benitez’s triumphed against Milan in the 2007 Champions League final, Paletta would have been granted a swift reunion with his former club in the FIFA Club World Cup final.
Instead, he faced his future employers, starting at the back against the likes of Kaka and Filippo Inzaghi as Boca suffered a 4-2 defeat.
Paletta was arguably one of the first notable overseas youngsters Benitez managed to bring to Anfield, but was by no means the only one who ultimately failed to make the grade at Liverpool even if his stint on Merseyside was one of the briefest.
Insua and Nabil El-Zahr joined shortly after the Argentine with Damien Plessis, Sebastian Leto and David Ngog later signing up as youngsters with one eye on the immediate first team.
The quintet all arguably made more of an impact on Merseyside than Paletta, but none of them can compete with his post-Reds career.
And his return to Argentina proved to be just the beginning.
Rebuilding his reputation in his homeland, Paletta tried his hand at European football again in 2010 as he signed for Serie A side Parma following three fruitful seasons in Argentina.
As Vickery had previously suggested, such a middle-move had proven beneficial to the centre-back.
Recording 131 appearances across four-and-a-half seasons, Paletta helped Parma to three successive mid-table finishes before clinching a sixth-place standing in 2013/14, with such form even earning him international recognition.
But it wasn’t for Argentina.
In possession of an Italian passport due to his ancestry, with his great-grandfather Vincenzo emigrating from Crotone, Paletta switched allegiances to Italy and was controversially handed his debut against Spain in a friendly in March 2014.
“I grew up in Argentina. My loved ones are there, my son Sebastian was born there,” the defender explained when asked about representing Italy. “But I feel Italian if I think about my great grandfather’s dream.
“He wanted his kids to go back to Calabria with some extra money in their pockets, to say he’d done what he’d set out to do.
“In a certain sense, wearing the blue (of Italy), would complete his journey.”
Having been written off in England as nothing more than another Benitez transfer flop, Paletta had to become accustomed to criticism and mockery from virtually the very start of his fledgling career.
And being included in Cesare Prandellii’s Italy squad for the 2014 World Cup did nothing to shield him from such scrutiny.
“I’ve learnt the national anthem and I’ll be singing it in Brazil”, Paletta stated following his call-up.
While Benitez had admired his no-nonsense defensive style, picking up unnecessary cards and suspensions for being excessively aggressive when tackling was a cloud that continued to haunt the centre-back, along with complaints about his consistency and occasional error-prone nature.
And even when delivering on the pitch, critics could always turn to his clumsy 6ft 3 figure, late-bloomer status or even how he went from a long-haired youngster to a thinning then bald Serie A defender if they wanted to deride a defender who many felt didn’t deserve his seat at the party and was unrecognisable from the baby-faced teenaged first unveiled alongside Benitez in 2006.
Paletta would make just one appearance at that year’s World Cup, winning what would prove to be his only start and final cap in their opening match.
But the fact it came in a 2-1 victory over England went some way to silence the shock at a ‘Liverpool flop’ being involved in the first place.
However, he was replaced by Ignazio Abate for their shock 1-0 defeat to Costa Rica, and again had to watch on from the sidelines as Leonardo Bonucci and Mattia De Sciglio came in for a 1-0 loss to Uruguay that sealed a group-stage exit.
With Parma imploding financially following his return to club action, denied entry to the Europa League because of an overdue tax debt as a result, Paletta was sold to AC Milan in January 2015 with his former side suffering relegation in his absence.
Making 14 appearances under Inzaghi, he spent the 2015/16 season on loan at Atalanta as the appointment of Sinisa Mihajlovic seemed to suggest his second chance at an elite club had passed him by.
But he was granted something of a revival under new boss Vincenzo Montella following his return to the San Siro, making 32 appearances across the 2016/17 appearances as he again did his best to valiantly silence any claims he was punching above his weight.
Falling out of favour again the following year, this time under Gennaro Gattuso, the now 31-year-old cancelled his Milan contract in January 2018 before signing for Chinese side Jiangsu Suning the following month.
Returning to Italy in November 2019, Paletta signed for Serie C outfit AC Monza but this is far from your normal seeing out your final years in the lower tiers.
Owned by former AC Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi, Monza have made no secret of their desire to win promotion to Serie A as quickly as possible.
And the defender helped them move one step closer to achieving that goal, making seven appearances before the coronavirus pandemic saw their league season suspended and the Italian Football Federation belatedly awarded them promotion as champions in June.
Competing in Serie B for the first time since 2001, Paletta was joined at Monza by Kevin-Prince Boateng in September and Mario Balotelli. The team secured a second promotion in succession to Serie A, although the defender did not make an appearance in the Italian top flight for them. His contract was terminated in February 2023.
With the £2m man certainly not a success at Anfield, he is often recalled as one of Liverpool’s worst Premier League signings, having been discarded so swiftly by Benitez and the Reds all those years ago.
But, as he’s proven repeatedly proven throughout his career, in reality he was anything but.
Pep Guardiola’s response to Mohamed Salah Liverpool contract extension speaks volumes
When asked for his thoughts on Mohamed Salah’s freshly-announced Liverpool contract extension, Pep Guardiola could only give a muted congratulations. His reaction to that question and others during Friday’s press conference showed the vast difference in mood between Merseyside and Manchester City.
After months and months of speculation, Liverpool and Salah finally put to rest any lingering doubts of their partnership coming to an end this summer with a big announcement on Friday morning. The Egyptian is now destined to continue his career at Anfield until 2027 at least.
As confidence-inducing as this piece of business is for the Reds, it should have the completely opposite effect on rivals. And that is the impression Guardiola certainly gave off when speaking to the media.
Asked how good it is to see a player of the 32-year-old’s ilk stay in the Premier League, the City manager replied: “That’s good to Arne Slot and the fans of Liverpool. There’s no doubt the quality of Mo Salah.”
Perhaps Guardiola can’t get too excited about a player who’s netted 13 and assisted eight against his team across the years because of his competitive streak. After all, the Reds beat City to the only Premier League title they’ve failed to win since 2018 and, seemingly, a second instance of that will be recorded in just a matter of a few weeks.
If all goes as expected, Salah would be bringing the fight to the current champions to contest two more Premier League campaigns in 2025/26 and 2026/27. The City manager might even look at his squad in its current state and question whether or not will they be there to fight for future titles.
With injuries, ageing and underperforming stars, they sit sixth in this season’s Premier League with seven matches to go. There’s not even guarantee that they play Champions League football next year.
Asked about transfer business this summer, to rectify problem they have experienced, the Catalan replied: “I don’t know what’s going to happen. Of course, the club is working, but we are not going to have 45 players in the squad as it’s not sustainable, in terms of emotionally for the team.
“We have to see – except Kevin [De Bruyne] – all the other contracts and we’ll see until the end how they behave – how we are. We are going to see [what happens this summer].”
Mohamed Salah signs new contract with Liverpool FC
Liverpool FC can announce Mohamed Salah has signed a new contract that will keep him with the club beyond the 2024-25 season.
So far this term, Salah has scored 32 goals in just 45 appearances in all competitions – 27 of which have come in the Premier League, making him the division’s leading marksman. These strikes have been supplemented by 22 assists for his teammates.
And today’s news means Salah will extend an eight-year stay at Anfield into the future and continue to help Arne Slot’s team challenge for the game’s biggest honours.
He told Liverpoolfc.com in exclusive reaction: “Of course I’m very excited. We have a great team now. Before also we had a great team. But I signed because I think we have a chance to win other trophies and enjoy my football.
“It’s great, I had my best years here. I played eight years, hopefully it’s going to be 10. Enjoying my life here, enjoying my football. I had the best years in my career.
“I would like to say to [the fans], I am very, very happy to be here. I signed here because I believe we can win a lot of big trophies together. Keep supporting us and we’ll give it our best, and hopefully in the future we’re going to win more trophies.”
Salah has cemented himself as a Liverpool legend since his transfer from AS Roma in the summer of 2017.
His remarkable record in front of goal has taken him to outright third in the Reds’ all-time top scorers list, with 243 strikes in 394 appearances to date.
During his time at Anfield, Salah has lifted seven major honours, picking up medals in the Premier League and Champions League, as well as the FIFA Club World Cup, UEFA Super Cup, FA Cup and two League Cups.
In addition, he has won the Premier League Golden Boot on three occasions, been named the PFA Players’ Player of the Year twice and taken home two FWA Footballer of the Year awards.
Now Salah will look to add further to those collections together with Liverpool, having committed his future to the club once more.
Liverpool
Mohamed Salah and Federico Chiesa left amazed after what Liverpool teammate did in training
Mohamed Salah and Federico Chiesa Left Stunned by Liverpool Teammate’s Jaw-Dropping Training Moment
Liverpool midfielder Tyler Morton has not featured for Arne Slot’s side since January but has left his Reds teammates in awe especially Mohamed Salah and Federico Chiesa after a stunning training ground display.
Despite only making five appearances for the Reds this season and not featuring since late January, he’s been turning heads in training. After two seasons on loan with Blackburn Rovers and Hull City, the England U21s international had hinted at a potential departure from Liverpool in January due to limited playing time.
However, he remained with the club post the transfer window closure. Arne Slot, in early February, revealed that Morton had undergone surgery following a shoulder injury. Although he hasn’t been included in a matchday squad since January, he was seen back in training towards the end of March, just before the Merseyside derby.
Morton recently stunned his teammates by scoring an impressive goal during a training drill at the AXA Training Centre. As Salah, Federico Chiesa and Cody Gakpo looked on, Morton shrugged off some playful teasing from a coach to score with aplomb.
The Reds’ squad was left in awe after witnessing a stunning display of skill from their midfielder, who executed a perfect Cruyff turn and flick, eliciting a ‘Wow!’ from his teammates before he scored with a sublime curl into the bottom corner, sparking further applause.
Gakpo celebrated with a hand-twirling gesture, and amid the laughter, Chiesa exclaimed, “You’re a wizard!”. Morton then linked up with a coach for a one-two, dashing onto a through-ball. Anticipating the outcome, Gakpo yelled ‘Hat-trick!” just before the midfielder expertly finished with his left foot from a tight angle, prompting more cheers from his teammates.
Morton’s celebration saw him slide on his knees in the corner, joined by Harvey Elliott, as Salah chuckled and Gakpo praised, “Well done, Ty!”. Chiesa was spotted applauding and remarking “nice”, while Elliott, after a celebratory leap, was overheard saying, “Never seen anything like it” as he rejoined the group.
Following Liverpool’s sharing of the goal on social media, Elliott later posted the clip to his Instagram story, captioning it: “Best thing I’ve ever seen! Limbs!”. As Liverpool gears up for their next match against West Ham United at home on Sunday, all eyes are on whether Morton, now back in training, will make it into Slot’s matchday squad or whether he will miss out again.
It’s been a year since Jürgen Klopp brought his unforgettable Liverpool chapter to a close—a decision that shocked fans, left a void in the heart of Anfield, and quietly shifted the rhythm of life for those closest to him. Among them is Ulla Sandrock, Klopp’s wife, who recently opened up about how life has changed since leaving Merseyside behind.
“It Was Never Just Football”
Reflecting on their time in Liverpool, Ulla describes it as more than just a footballing journey. “It was a full life,” she shared. “It wasn’t just about the trophies or the matches—it was about the people, the passion, the city that welcomed us with open arms.”
A New Rhythm
Since their departure, Ulla and Jürgen have embraced a quieter lifestyle—more travel, more time together, and more space to breathe. “We don’t wake up thinking about the next fixture anymore,” she smiled. “Now, we wake up and ask, ‘Where should we go today?’”
But leaving Liverpool wasn’t easy. “It was home,” Ulla said simply. “We built a life there. Leaving was like leaving family.”
A Lasting Connection
Though they now live away from the buzz of the Premier League, the love for Liverpool still runs deep in their hearts. “We still follow the club, still watch the games,” Ulla admitted. “And when Liverpool wins, we still smile like we’re part of it—because in many ways, we always will be.”
What Lies Ahead
Ulla hinted at future plans—some writing, some philanthropy, and above all, peace. “We gave so much of ourselves to football. Now it’s time to enjoy what we’ve built together.”
As the Klopp era remains etched in the annals of Liverpool history, Ulla’s quiet strength reminds us that behind every great leader is often an even greater love—one that now gets to write its next chapter far away from the floodlights of Anfield.
Liverpool are set to appoint Laurie Shaw as their new chief scientist, with the Scot currently on gardening leave after leaving his role as director of football data at the City Football Group.
Liverpool have reportedly poached Laurie Shaw from rivals Manchester City to become the club’s new chief scientist. Shaw joined the City Football Group (CFG) in February 2021, leaving his role as a research scientist and lecturer at Harvard University to start working in football.
The Scot was appointed head of AI at CFG, the multi-club model that owns stakes in a number of teams including City, Girona and Palermo, before becoming director of football data in September 2023.
However, the Liverpool Echo are reporting that he is now set to join Premier League rivals Liverpool after serving a period of gardening leave.
The report states that he is set to work specifically with Liverpool, although owners Fenway Sports Group do have stakes in a number of other sports teams around the world.
Shaw’s new role will see him work under Liverpool’s director of research Will Spearman, with the club’s data department widely viewed as one of the best in football.
Dr Ian Graham spearheaded Liverpool’s analytics department after joining the club in 2012, with Spearman replacing him when he left in 2023. Liverpool’s use of data has been a huge part of their success in recent years and the addition of Shaw will come as a huge boost for the Reds.
Opening up about how analytics helped shape Liverpool’s success, Graham told The Athletic last year: “Mike Gordon, Michael Edwards, myself and the rest of the transfer committee always had the belief the process would pay off if we could get all the parts working properly.
“Our personalities were similar in not caring about the outside noise and sticking to a long-term view. The first guy I ever hired to my team, I told him ‘I’m not going to say this is a job for life; if we’re still here after two years we’re doing well’.
“I think at most clubs with those failures in the first few years, they would have gone in another direction. But Fenway knew the process was working.
“They could see that a department was being created which would give us an edge over other clubs in the future. It was just that the rest of the world couldn’t see it at that time.
“The typical experience of a data person going into a club back in the early 2010s was you come in with some bright ideas straight out of university and some old football guys think, ‘This is all rubbish; we’re not going to listen to this stuff’.
“There was resistance — and there was certainly resistance from Brendan [Rodgers]. Tough as that was, I knew it was a much better position to be in than at most clubs because I had buy-in from the owners and from Michael who was my direct manager.”
Liverpool winger Mohamed Salah is on the verge of signing a new contract at Anfield to extend his stay beyond this summer.
Mohamed Salah took to social media within two hours of the news dropping that Liverpool are increasingly confident he will sign a new contract with the club. As reported by the ECHO on Wednesday evening, the expectation from Liverpool is that a deal will be struck between them and the 32-year-old.
The forward’s current contract expires in the summer and is therefore able to walk away on a free transfer. However, that now appears to be unlikely with Salah having always insisted that he wishes to remain at Anfield beyond this summer.
The news about the breakthrough in negotiations dropped around 5pm on Wednesday, and at 6.45pm, Salah took to X to post two pictures of himself. The first was of him smiling in the gym, and the other featured the forward and team-mate Dominik Szoboszlai at the coffee bar at the club’s AXA Training Centre.
No caption was included on the post, but Salah has long spoken of his desire to remain a Liverpool player beyond this summer. And back in January, Reds boss Arne Slot said the club are keen for Salah to extend his stay.
https://x.com/MoSalah/status/1910026262304718982?t=X5zZ8Vo_o48RxZB23wdziA&s=19
He said: “It would be a surprise if anyone said they didn’t want Mo Salah. He has done so well for so many years, that everyone probably wants him.
“He has done so well without my advice so he can keep doing what is best for his career, even without my advice. My advice to him would be different to the one [of Al Faisal].
“Everybody wants him, including us. We, of course, want him to extend as well.
“That is clear. But I am not surprised someone wants him.
“He has done so many smart things in his career, so he will make the right decision for himself and hopefully for us as well.”
Providing an update on his future in January, Salah said: “It’s my last year in the club so you want to do something special for the city, that is the thing in my head.” Asked if he really believed this campaign would be his last hurrah, he continued: “So far, yeah, it is the last six months.
“There is nothing, no progress there. We are far away from any progress so we just need to wait and see.”
Before he continued: “I think the thing in my head is, ‘OK, if this is your last six months or last year, what do you want to see in the future?’ Do you want to look back and say, ‘Oh, I was concerned about the contract or stressed?’
“Or do you just want to say, ‘OK, I had an unbelievable season.’ So that is in my head now, if I feel a kind of distraction I just remind myself, ‘You want to look back and say, ‘I had an unbelievable season,’ so that’s what I want to do.”
Liverpool are closing in on fresh contract terms with Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk
The news that almost all Liverpool fans will have been craving for the last number of months arrived on Thursday with widespread reports claiming key pair Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk were closing in on new deals at the club.
Salah and Van Dijk, along with right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold, are all out of contract at Anfield at the end of the season. Alexander-Arnold has been strongly tipped to join Real Madrid as a free agent ahead of next campaign. However, Salah and Van Dijk are now both set to stay with a number of reports on Thursday claiming Liverpool were increasingly confident of finalising fresh terms with the pair.
The news can provide the Reds with a major boost heading into the final seven games of the campaign as they look to rack up the required points to confirm themselves as Premier League champions.
Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk new contract lengths
David Ornstein of The Athletic provided more detailed information on the contract situation of Salah and Van Dijk, as he revealed that the pair are poised to both sign new two-year deals. It would keep them at the club until the summer of 2027.
He wrote on X: “Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk closing in on signing new 2yr [sic] contracts with Liverpool. Both players into final months of existing deals but breakthrough found in negotiations & fresh terms set to extend key pair at Liverpool until summer 2027.”
While Liverpool look closer to signing Salah and Van Dijk on new deals, Alexander-Arnold appears no closer to remaining with his boyhood club as he continues to be pursued by Real Madrid. All three players have been free to speak to foreign clubs since January 1 and agree a pre-contract ahead of next season.
Speaking last week after a 3-2 loss to Fulham, Van Dijk said of his contract, stating: “There is progress, yeah. I don’t know [if I’ll stay], we’ll see. Listen, these are internal discussions and we’ll see. I love the club, I love the fans and they were there for us again and we wanted to reward them.”
How important are Salah and Van Dijk to Liverpool?
While the pair are entering the latter years of their respective careers, there is no doubting the quality that both men still possess. Salah turns 33 and Van Dijk will be 34 by the time next season rolls around but neither of the duo have shown signs of droppinf off this season. Van Dijk has played the most out of any Liverpool player in all competitions with Salah right behind him in the minutes played rankings.
Salah has scored a remarkable 32 goals and provided 22 assists in all competitions. His goal tally is double that of Liverpool’s second best goalscorer Cody Gakpo. Van Dijk has provided an assured presence in the heart of the Liverpool defence this season as he looks to become only the second player to captain the club to a league title in the Premier League era.
Speaking about the defender earlier in the season, Reds boss Arne Slot said: “He deserves every compliment he gets. He’s been outstanding for this club for so many years and since I’ve been working here, he’s been outstanding for me. He wants, like all the others, to make it a great season. I hope I can enjoy working with him for a long time – I don’t think that’s a surprise.”
Liverpool
‘I made a mistake’ – Jurgen Klopp wanted to punch himself after dreadful error he fixed at Liverpool
“I made a mistake.” Those were the candid words of Jurgen Klopp, who once admitted he wanted to punch himself after passing up on Sadio Mane—before eventually making amends by signing him at Liverpool, where the Senegalese forward would go on to become a legend.
Sadio Mane, who turns 33 today, proved to be one of Klopp’s most inspired signings—though it took a second chance for the move to happen. After winning every major trophy with Liverpool, Mane called time on his Anfield career in the summer of 2022 with a £35m switch to Bayern Munich.
Although he won the Bundesliga, his stint in Germany was underwhelming. Injuries hampered his progress, and a dressing room altercation with Leroy Sane didn’t help. Mane scored 12 goals in 38 appearances, starting only 27 times before moving to Saudi Arabia’s Al Nassr in August 2023.
Despite his struggles abroad, Mane’s Liverpool legacy remains untarnished. He scored 120 goals over six seasons, helping the Reds reclaim their place in Europe’s elite and win six trophies, including the Premier League, Champions League, and FIFA Club World Cup.
Interestingly, Mane could have linked up with Klopp much earlier. The German coach first considered signing him in 2014 while managing Borussia Dortmund, having tracked his rise since the 2012 London Olympics. The two even held talks, but Klopp backed out.
“I made a mistake,” Klopp later confessed. “We met, we talked—but I didn’t feel it at the time. His baseball cap was askew, the blond streak, he looked like a rapper just starting out. I thought, ‘I don’t have time for this’. I got it totally wrong. A few months later I wanted to punch myself.”
“When Michael Edwards mentioned him in 2016, I didn’t need convincing. I just said, ‘Let’s do it.’ It was one of my first big Liverpool decisions, and it felt right.”
Dortmund’s loss was Liverpool’s gain. In fact, Klopp managed to snatch Mane from under Manchester United’s nose.
“I was really close to going to Manchester United,” Mane revealed in an interview with The Telegraph. “Everything was agreed. I had the contract.”
Then came the call from Klopp.
“He said, ‘Sadio, let me explain what happened at Dortmund.’ I told him, ‘It’s okay, it happened. I forgive you.’ Then he said, ‘Now I want you at Liverpool.’ And I said, ‘Okay, let’s focus on the future.’”
-
Liverpool2 weeks ago
Trent Alexander-Arnold reveals why he left Liverpool to sign a five-year deal with Real Madrid
-
Liverpool2 weeks ago
Federico Chiesa’s heartfelt message to wife as she ditches UK
-
Liverpool2 weeks ago
Isaac Kearney: A Life Beyond Measure
-
Liverpool2 weeks ago
Jurgen Klopp has already ‘made his feelings clear’ on Trent Alexander-Arnold joining Real Madrid as ‘warning’ sent
-
Liverpool1 week ago
Liverpool Star Commits Future to Club with New 5-Year Deal
-
Liverpool3 weeks ago
Isaac Kearney Steals the Show at Anfield Legends charity match with a Statement That Shook the Legends
-
Liverpool2 weeks ago
Isaac Kearney: A Little Warrior with a Powerful Message of Hope for the Disabled Community
-
Liverpool1 week ago
Liverpool transfer news: Torres set for return as Richard Hughes opens talks