Liverpool is expected to reward Jarell Quansah's progress with a new contract shortly while talks have also begun with Ibrahima Konate about extending his stay at Anfield into what should be his peak years.
That is according to The Times and others and in isolation, of course, that is only good news. Both players have the potential to be world-class center-backs as they get older and even more experienced, and the duo have already shown what they are capable of producing. Arne Slot might have hooked Quansah at half-time during his first match in charge but the 21-year-old will rightly be afforded many more opportunities.
It was inevitable, however, that while news of those two Liverpool developments taking place emerged, they would be placed in the context of the three that haven't .
It remains the case that Virgil van Dijk , Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mohamed Salah are out of contract at the end of the season as things stand, and the January 1 date at which time each of them can agree free transfer moves to clubs abroad is edging closer. It is now only 86 days away.
According to The Times , there is an "impasse" at Liverpool between those three key players and the club, even though talks are underway with their representatives. So far, there has been a lack of "common ground".
Sporting director Richard Hughes was handed a tricky task when he arrived in the summer. As well as needing to oversee the transition post- Jurgen Klopp , the ex-Bournemouth chief also needed to make decisions on Van Dijk, Alexander-Arnold and Salah — who hold much of the power in negotiations given that they can relatively soon walk away for free.
At least by making early moves with the likes of Quansah (whose current deal runs until 2027) and Konate (who is tied down until 2026), Liverpool can avoid putting itself under similar pressure in the future with those stars.
The Reds appear to be getting on with those talks at the perfect time — and around the time you would normally expect — with enough time to find an agreement before the power shifts. That makes sense, and the Van Dijk, Alexander-Arnold and Salah conundrum should be treated separately as a result.
It was not Hughes who allowed the contracts to run down to this point, with Klopp's departure likely to have delayed things given a replacement for him was required, and the change of sporting director at the same time as Slot's arrival won't have helped.
The transition has gone well so far, but it was a lot of change in one go. Yet it doesn't change the fact that losing any of the trio for nothing would not be a good look.
"Trying to replace all three, that would be totally impossible," Reds legend Mark Lawrenson told Liverpool.com recently . "And with the money we're talking about, I'm not sure they necessarily could."
At the very least, Liverpool should be getting a substantial transfer fee to reinvest even if it does have to let a star player leave having only rejected a bid worth $196m (£150m/€178m) for Salah from Saudi Arabia a little over a year ago. Finding a replacement for the Egyptian without a dollar coming in for his services next summer would be financially ill-advised if nothing else.
Time, though, is ticking by, so far with no suggestion of an agreement on the contracts which are the most pressing. Liverpool appears to be taking steps to avoid a similarly sticky situation in the future — for now, the Van Dijk, Alexander-Arnold and Salah wait looks set to continue.
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