Van Dijk, Alexander-Arnold and Salah have been Liverpool's pillars since the Jurgen Klopp era. After Arne Slot took charge, they still played very well and were irreplaceable factors.
There are those who have passed the age of 30 like Salah or Van Dijk, but there are also those who are at their most energetic age like Alexander-Arnold. The common point of this trio is that they are receiving very high salaries. If they sign a new contract with Liverpool, their salary will be even higher, causing some difficulties for the team.
The reason for this uncertainty is that last week, Arne Slot said Liverpool would increase their force in the summer of 2025. If the trio stay and receive high salaries, it will limit the recruitment of new stars. Slot needs a squad with more depth to ensure he can compete on all fronts like this season.
Arne Slot will definitely clean up the squad to move towards a new era. During the transition process, he really needs this trio of pillars. However, going the long way with Salah (32) and Van Dijk (33) is a huge gamble. Once the contract has been extended, the term will not be less than 3 years (not including the option to activate more). If Van Dijk or Salah's form unfortunately decline next year, Liverpool will lose all their way.
Meanwhile, Alexander-Arnold is at the peak of his career (26). The defender's case is further complicated as Real Madrid are set to open the door to welcome him this summer. Real want to bring Alexander-Arnold to the Bernabeu for free, as they did with Kylian Mbappe. If Liverpool's offer is not attractive enough, even if they want to extend it, it is uncertain whether the English star will agree.
Fenway Sports Group's view on running Liverpool will remain unchanged. They want The Kop to maintain and balance their revenue and expenditure as an independent enterprise. Therefore, there will be no such thing as FSG spending a lot of money without calculating the bad scenario.
FSG will not want to push their players' salaries to a super-huge level. Salah is currently on a salary of around £350,000/week. This is a high level but not inferior to his colleagues at Man United or Man City. To keep these stars, FSG often spends more through bonuses. According to The Athletic, Salah earns a lot from achievement bonuses, so he has no problem with his salary.
FSG only paid Liverpool a fixed amount of money to pay their salaries. Therefore, if this trio stays at the club and receives a higher salary, Arne Slot will find it very difficult to go to the market in this summer transfer window. Liverpool's current personnel are all very good at Slot's hand, so his elimination in large numbers is not going to happen.
If Slot wants to keep both these three pillars and others, Liverpool's finances will have to improve in the future so that FSG can spend more money on the salary fund. According to data from Deloitte Football Money League released last month, Liverpoolpoool's total revenue is about 714 million Euros for the 2023-24 season, up from the previous season (683 million Euros).
Most of them were thanks to increased commercial revenue of 45 million Euros and revenue from the competition day increased by 29 million Euros. This is thanks to the opening of the new Anfield Road grandstand. However, broadcasting revenue decreased by 42 million Euros after Liverpool failed to qualify for the 2023-24 Champions League.
This year's return to the Champions League and good play will significantly increase the club's revenue. Liverpool will pocket at least 100 million Euros in Champions League bonuses, with 56.5 million Euros more from matches. In addition, he started a new clothing contract with Adidas. In general, financial figures for the coming season will be more positive.
