Liverpool’s record goalscorer Ian Rush admits that no one is bigger than the club, but hopes that a contract extension can still be agreed for star trio Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold.
On Sunday, captain Van Dijk said there was no change to his situation, meaning his current contract, like that of his two teammates, has ten months left to run.
The Dutch international is 33 years old, the same age as Salah will be next summer, but the two remain key players and will play an even more important role in the first season under new head coach Arne Slot.
Alexander-Arnold will reach his peak with his 26th birthday in October, but has already proven himself to be a key figure.
“Nobody is bigger than the club but they have a year left so hopefully the three of them will be fit for another three years at Liverpool,” he told the PA news agency.
“They are great players and personally I would like to see them stay, but we have to look at each situation.
“I think the players are not thinking about the situation, I think they just want to play.”
Uncertainty about their future is the last thing Slot wants as he prepares to begin the first season without Klopp at Anfield in nine years.
As long as no contracts have been signed, the Dutchman will continue to face questions on this issue, even though the responsibility for this lies with the new sporting director Richard Hughes.
But given the excitement this summer, Rush hopes that the ongoing debate surrounding the three players will not jeopardise a promising pre-season.
“It would be nice (to have arrangements), but ultimately Richard Hughes is getting paid for it,” he added at the recent reopening of Liverpool Museum.
“I think the next step now is to get the season underway. It’s not just eleven players on the pitch, it’s the whole squad.
“Individual players win games, but you have to be a team. If Slot can instill that team spirit, I’m sure he’ll want to stay at Liverpool.”
Rush is also optimistic that the former Feyenoord head coach can live up to the expectations placed on him as he looks to fill the huge void left by his predecessor.
“He has an excellent reputation and I think Liverpool know which managers they need to sign, so I’m looking forward to it,” he said.
“He knows what he wants and is similar to Jürgen in some ways. That’s the way forward. I like his style of play.”
“I saw Feyenoord last season and they play attacking football, which is exactly what Liverpool fans want, so hopefully not much needs to change.
“We have to keep expectations in check, but if you had told me last season that Liverpool would finish in the top four, I would have accepted it in a heartbeat.
“At one point we could have won four trophies and we won one, but I would have taken the first four.
“If Slot had taken the lead last year, it would have been more difficult than what he is doing now. Hopefully he would try to get back into the top four and get good results in the competitions.
“But the main thing is: ‘Let’s not do worse than we did (third place).'”
