Liverpool have been handed some positive contract news with Virgil van Dijk progressing in talks with the club as a former players lays bear their poor recent form
Liverpool are having to deal with a rare feeling this week as they digest a Premier League loss for just the second time this season. Fulham ended their unbeaten away run with a 3-2 success at Craven Cottage.
The Reds remain firmly in control of the title race with Arsenal only able to pick up a draw at Everton on Saturday, but Arne Slot will have to stew on the loss for a week before the team return to action with a game against West Ham next weekend.
The Champions League resumes this week, but with Liverpool out of the tournament they have a full week to prepare for the Hammers. Mohamed Salah’s dip in form was a talking point after the loss in west London, but Arne Slot has backed him to get back to his usual goalscoring ways.
In the background there is still talk of summer moves, which will largely be dictated by who stays at Anfield when it comes to their out of contract trio. Here’s the latest from the red half of Merseyside.
Van Dijk progresses in talks
Virgil van Dijk has given a positive update on his future by admitting there has been “progress” in his contract talks. It is the clearest sign yet that Dutchman will sign a new deal and remain at Anfield beyond this summer. Van Dijk turns 34 in a matter of months but still wants a two-year extension if he is to stay.
READ MORE: Virgil van Dijk drops huge Liverpool contract hint with ‘progress’ messageREAD MORE: Arne Slot jumps to Mohamed Salah’s defence after Liverpool’s shock defeat at Fulham
Van Dijk said: “There is progress, yeah. I don’t know, 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 at Fulham. But want I them to be there against West Ham on Sunday again and make the stadium an amazing venue like always for us.”
There has been less movement regarding Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold, who looks increasingly like he will move to Real Madrid as they look to land the English right-back on a free by offering him a mammoth deal at the Bernabeu.
Reds can’t equal Man Utd record
Liverpool’s loss to Fulham on Sunday might not have seriously harmed their title chances but it has seen them miss out on a rare opportunity to try and match a feat achieved by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Manchester United side, who enjoyed a stellar record away from home.
Slot’s men were unable to extend their 17-game streak, stretching back to April 2024 when Jurgen Klopp was still in charge. United set the record for the longest unbeaten away run in Premier League history several seasons ago, going 29 games without losing between February 2020 and September 2021.
In doing so the Red Devils surpassed Arsenal’s previous record of 27 matches which was set between April 2003 and September 2004. Liverpool still had a way to go, but losing at Fulham means they’re back to the drawing board.
Liverpool form not a recent issue
Former Red Stephen Warnock insists the loss at Fulham had somewhat been coming with the league leaders not impressing for several games. Warnock went back to the win over Southampton in early March, citing that as the beginning of their dip. Since seeing off the Saints they’ve lost three of four games.
Their former defender said on Sky Sports : “I think they’ve been poor since the Southampton game, they limped over the line, they were lucky and needed changes at half-time. They were poor, the PSG games took a lot out of them, they weren’t great and rode their luck with Alisson, the Newcastle performance was poor and the Everton game was really poor.”
Warnock has also disagreed with Slot, who rejected the idea they were running out of steam, and claimed his former team look “leggy” going into the final weeks.
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