There is a possibility that Michael Edwards may be returning to Liverpool in the near future, which may have repercussions for three senior players in Jurgen Klopp’s squad.
The 44-year-old is ‘near to’ rejoining the Anfield club in a more expansive role than the sporting director one that he had previously held, according to a post that was made by Fabrizio Romano on X in the early hours of Sunday morning.
According to Football Insider, if this were to occur, it would indicate that players in the age group of 30 and older, such as Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk (whose present contracts are set to expire in 2025), and Andy Robertson (2026), would have a lower likelihood of being offered long-term contracts with substantial salaries when their contracts are up for renewal.
In the past, one of the most significant grounds of contention between Edwards and Klopp at Liverpool was their divergent viewpoints over the terms of contracts offered to players who were seen to be “aging.”
In light of the fact that the 44-year-old is going to be given a greater degree of power than he had during his previous tenure with the club, he is going to have a greater say over matters pertaining to contracts than whoever is going to take over as our manager in the future.
Given that Salah (31) and Van Dijk (32) are Liverpool’s two highest earners, earning £350,000 and £220,000 per week, respectively, according to Capology, it is easy to understand why Edwards could be hesitant to offer them long-term contract extensions on comparable salaries if he returns to the club in the coming days.
Nevertheless, taking into consideration the fact that both players continue to be of great importance to the Reds on the field, it would be a kamikaze move to just allow their present contracts to expire or to put them up for sale.
The report from Football Insider suggests that an ideal compromise could be found in which the two players are retained at Anfield beyond the year 2025.
This would protect their immediate futures without committing enormous resources to two assets that, due to their undeniable brilliance, will naturally decrease in value over the course of the remaining ten years.
Because Robertson is a little bit younger (he will turn 30 tomorrow) and earns a significantly lower amount (100,000 pounds per week), there is a possibility that he will still receive a sizeable contract extension.
However, this could be contingent on how important Edwards considers the Scotland captain to be to Liverpool’s long-term future.
We can only hope that a solution can be found that will allow all three players to remain with the Reds for a few more years while still being able to accommodate the wage structure that the club’s powerbrokers may want to establish.
