Steve Nicol says who Liverpool should offer a contract to first out of Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk

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Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk have entered the last years of their Liverpool contracts and are no closer to signing new deals at the club.

Both players have been in sublime form at the start of the season under new manager Arne Slot, who has a sizable task in his hands to convince them to stay.

Van Dijk said after the Reds’ 2-0 win against Brentford that he was calm about his future, while Salah admitted that Liverpool are yet to begin talks with him over a new contract after starring in the 3-0 win against Manchester United.

With Trent Alexander-Arnold’s contract also set to wind down at the end of the current season, the upcoming months could shape Liverpool’s future for better or for worse.

And Steve Nicol believes Salah should be the first of the three Liverpool players to get a new contract.

Steve Nicol says Mohamed Salah should be the priority for Liverpool over Virgil van Dijk

While Nicol acknowledged Alexander-Arnold as a fantastic player, he feels the England international won’t be as hard to replace as Van Dijk or Salah.

Between the pair, Nicol feels Salah’s consistency and end product will be hard to find in the market.

“Salah, of course,” said Nicol on ESPN FC’s YouTube channel when asked which of the three Liverpool players in question should be awarded a new deal first.

“Liverpool will survive without Trent, as much as what he does is fantastic. Virgil is going to be a tough one to replace, but again – goals! He [Salah] scores like what, 30 goals a season? He’s been unbelievable for the last five or six seasons.”

The Liverpool icon also feels Salah can follow in Cristiano Ronaldo’s footsteps and score goals well into his 30s with the Portuguese international still going strong at 39.

Nicol continued: “Cristiano Ronaldo is still scoring goals regardless of whether you think he does enough elsewhere. So maybe Salah does the same!”

Liverpool must sort out contract situations ASAP

Liverpool simply cannot afford to lose any of Salah, Trent or Van Dijk.

Alexander-Arnold still has the lion’s share of his career ahead of him and is one of the biggest matchwinners in world football despite playing as a right-back.

Losing a boyhood Scouser and a player of his calibre on a free transfer would prove to be catastrophic for Liverpool.

Van Dijk and Salah, on the other hand, are well into their 30s, so Liverpool are likely to err on the side of caution before handing them long-term contracts.

However, the duo have been among the best players in world football since joining the club and have shown no signs of slowing down.

Liverpool can take their time with this one, but they absolutely can’t afford to get it wrong.

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