Liverpool chairman Tom Werner has admitted the club were prepared to let Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk leave for free during last summer’s contract negotiations.
Both players were in the final year of their deals before signing extensions at the end of last season, following months of protracted talks.
The negotiations ran alongside Liverpool’s title-winning campaign, with uncertainty persisting deep into the spring over whether new terms would be agreed.
Werner has now revealed how close Fenway Sports Group came to walking away from discussions, insisting the finances had to be right for the club, while heaping praise on sporting director Richard Hughes.
‘My impatience is balanced by his patience,’ the American told The Athletic in an extract from Walk On: Inside Arne Slot’s Liverpool by James Pearce.
‘I’d call him frequently and say, “Richard, how are things going with Mo Salah and his contract?”, and he would say, “Tom, it will all be good in the end”.
‘I think all the agents who deal with him would say that he conducts business in a very respectful way. He has a plan and he executes it.’
‘We were delighted that the new contracts for Mo and Virgil were sorted. But you know what? If Richard had called and said, “The chasm is too big”, I would have respected that too. John, Mike and I try to find people who are excellent at their jobs and let them do their jobs.
‘We don’t meddle, we just provide support and advice from our point of view. There’s a lot of trust. I can’t say enough wonderful things about Richard.’
While there was almost unanimous delight among Liverpool fans when deals for two of the club’s modern legends were agreed, the decision to reward the pair – aged 33 and 34 respectively – has since been called into question amid the Reds’ struggles this term.
Last month, former Manchester United star Wayne Rooney laid the blame for Liverpool’s poor title defence firmly at the door of the duo, claiming their attitude is a ‘big concern’.
‘No-one has seen this coming, it’s hit them quick, it’s hit them hard and I think they’re struggling to find a way out of it,’ he said on The Wayne Rooney Show following their 3-1 defeat by Brentford, their fourth straight Premier League loss.
‘This is a time where the manager and the leaders in the team need to figure it out very quickly. Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah, they’ve signed new deals but I don’t think they’ve really led that team this season.
‘I think body language tells you a lot, and I think we’re seeing slightly different body language from the two of them. They are the top two players in that team and if their body language is not right, that affects everyone else.
‘I might be wrong on this, but if I was a Liverpool fan or the manager, that would be a big concern for me.’
Salah’s form in particular has been striking, with the Egyptian looking a pale imitation of the player who swept almost all major individual honours after registering 34 goals and 23 assists in 52 matches.
Indeed, the Reds talisman was singled out for blame this week in the German media, who asserted that his ‘solo’ play has contributed to the underwhelming start made by £116million signing Florian Wirtz.
‘It’s noticeable that he’s overlooked Wirtz and hasn’t made any of the other summer signings, who together cost around half a billion euros, shine,’ read the report in Bild.
‘Salah has provided three assists this season, all of which led to goals, all for players who have been with the club longer. Salah is increasingly becoming a major problem for Liverpool and Wirtz.’
Wirtz is yet to register a single goal or assist after 11 games in the Premier League. Meanwhile, Salah has four goals and two assists from the same number of matches.
With Liverpool lying eighth in the Premier League, eight points behind leaders Arsenal, the chances of them retaining their title look a long shot. In fact, former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher believes the side need to reinforce their defence during the upcoming January window to ensure they qualify for the Champions League.
‘I don’t think this group of players is equipped to win the Premier League this year, even with the points and how far behind they are,’ he said on The Overlap.
‘Maybe in January, more physicality, more pace, more power. I think if Liverpool don’t sign a defender in January, they could miss out on the Champions League.’
Liverpool will hope for a reversal of fortunes when they return to action after the international break. They face Nottingham Forest at Anfield on Saturday as they look to close the gap to the Gunners.
