Liverpool told which one of their three contract rebels would 'not be a huge loss'

Liverpool told which one of their three contract rebels would 'not be a huge loss'

Former Liverpool striker Stan Collymore believes the Reds can afford to lose Trent Alexander-Arnold, with the right-back one of three senior stars out of contract in the summer.

Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk are all free to sign pre-contract agreements with potential suitors, or leave for free at the end of June when their current deals run out. Real Madrid remain keen on the England international, but failed with their efforts to force a deal through in January.

Arne Slot's team remain in pole position in the Premier League, and progressed to the Champions League round of 16 as top seeds after winning seven of their eight league phase matches. The future of the trio remains a concern, though, with manager Slot regularly asked about what might come next.

Collymore was an Anfield team-mate of Steve McManaman, who would go on to leave the Reds for Real Madrid in 1999. If Liverpool's current homegrown hero follows suit, though, the pundit thinks they have the tools to move on.

“Looking at probabilities, I'd say there's a 90% chance Van Dijk stays, around 60% for Salah, and a 50/50 chance for Alexander-Arnold — bizarrely, because he’s the Scouser!" Collymore told William Hill Vegas. "But when you’ve won everything with your boyhood club, as Trent has, a move abroad becomes tempting.

“Trent isn’t a great defender, but he’s a fantastic footballer, and a league like La Liga would suit him perfectly. Real Madrid would allow him to drift into midfield, have more time on the ball, and play to his strengths. If he goes there, you couldn’t begrudge him — it’s Real Madrid!

“If Liverpool were to lose Trent, they could find a right-back who gets into attacking positions, so I wouldn’t say his departure would be a huge loss. The bigger issue would be losing Van Dijk. Van Dijk won’t want to cause problems — he just wants the right deal — but Liverpool need to prepare for the future. They should be getting someone like Jarell Quansah up to speed, but there are still question marks over him.”

Can Liverpool afford to lose Trent Alexander-Arnold? Have your say in the comments section

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Alexander-Arnold has played a big part in Liverpool's impressive season. The Reds will have to play the second leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final without him, though, after he was forced off in the weekend victory over Bournemouth.

“He is going to miss the game tomorrow [against Tottenham in the Carabao Cup] and we have to see if he is able to play on Sunday [in the FA Cup against Plymouth]," Slot said on Wednesday. "What we do know is he is not available to play tomorrow.

"I think you saw he left the pitch with a bit of a pain in his leg so that’s why he misses the game tomorrow. But he’s already on the pitch, not with the team but with the rehab coach so let’s see how long it’s going to take but he’s not going to be available tomorrow.”

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