Liverpool make HUGE play to keep Trent Alexander-Arnold from Real Madrid clutches as mega contract offer slapped on table

Rob McCarthy 05 Jan 2025 8:11 AM

Liverpool make massive Trent Alexander-Arnold contract offer

Liverpool have reportedly offered Trent Alexander-Arnold a huge £78million (€94m / $97m) five-year contract to try and keep the England defender from out of the clutches of Spanish giants Real Madrid.

The right-back is one of three high-profile Anfield stars who will be out of contract in the summer, alongside talismanic pairing Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah but, unlike that duo, he is being hunted down by one major club as Real hope to pull off a sensational coup.

All three players are now eligible to negotiate with foreign clubs and pen a pre-contract deal ahead of a summer move, although it’s widely known that Carlo Ancelotti would love to get Alexander-Arnold on board this month – with a £20m offer on the table.

For their part, Liverpool have made it clear that the player will not be leaving Merseyside in January, especially with the club sitting pretty at the top of the Premier League and the expanded Champions League table, while they also face Tottenham in a two-legged Carabao Cup semi-final.

However, as reported in the Daily Mirror, Real also have a similar £300,000-a-week deal on the Bernabeu table for the 26-year-old to Liverpool’s counter-punch, although Alexander-Arnold would also expect a huge signing-on fee from Real Madrid if he joins in the summer as a free agent.

It’s all left the Three Lions star with a dilemma, torn between remaining at his home-town club with the chance of further establishing himself as a Kop idol or becoming a Galactico at the world’s biggest club, where he would team up with England colleague and good friend Jude Bellingham.

The report adds that the Premier League club feel they cannot do anymore to try and entice Alexander-Arnold to remain at Anfield for the prime years of his career, while there have been no demands from the player to be handed the captaincy, as has previously been rumoured.

In fact, Alexander-Arnold is confident that will happen anyway, with the defender the natural successor to Van Dijk when the Dutchman’s time as a regular first-teamer comes to an end.

Trent keeping his cards close to his chest

As the rumours continue to circulate over what path Alexander-Arnold will take next, the player himself has been keeping his own counsel on the future, as he weighs up both inviting options.

Indeed, he stated recently; “I have signed four or five contract extensions and none of those have been played out in public – and this one won’t be either.”

As TT have previously stated, Liverpool remain more confident of both Salah and Van Dijk agreeing new two-year deals with their current contracts also coming to an end in the summer.

That’s despite the former once again indicating that this could be his final year at the club after providing an extremely worrying update over contract negotiations, amid continued links to the Saudi Pro League.

“There is nothing, no progress there. We are far away from any progress so we just need to wait and see,” Salah said when asked about about his Liverpool future in an interview with Sky Sports.

The 32-year-old added: “I think the thing in my head is OK if this is your last six months or last year, what do you want to see in the future? Do you want to look back and say ‘Oh I was concerned about the contract or stressed?’ or do you just want to say ‘Ok I had an unbelievable season’.

“So that is in my head now. If I feel a kind of distraction I just remind myself ‘OK you want to look back and say I had an unbelievable season’ so that’s what I want to do.”

However, for Alexander-Arnold, he is at a completely different stage of his career compared to Salah and the next decision he makes will almost certainly be a life-changing one.

Liverpool will just be hoping that the coin flip comes down on their side – if it does indeed come down to that.

Latest Liverpool news: Chiesa exit on the cards / Bajcetic on the move

Liverpool are willing to let Federico Chiesa leave on loan for the rest of the season ahead of his main suitors making their first approach imminently – while their stance on his long-term future has also been clarified.

Chiesa has had a torrid time at Anfield so far after arriving in what looked like a bargain deal from Juventus in the summer. Only four times has Arne Slot sent the Italy winger onto the pitch so far for Liverpool.

Injuries have not helped his case, but to get his career back up and running, Chiesa might need to leave Liverpool. On that front, reports have claimed Chiesa wants to return to Italy – and Liverpool’s stance on the player’s future has been revealed.

Meanwhile, Liverpool are ready to tear up one loan deal and sanction a different one for top midfield prospect Stefan Bajcetic, according to multiple reports.