by Arne Slot discusses Real Madrid’s interest in Trent Alexander-Arnold and the contract situations of Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah at Liverpool
Arne Slot says he is not worried about speculation linking Trent Alexander-Arnold with a free transfer to Real Madrid next summer and admitted it would be “strange” if he was not involved in contract negotiations for the vice-captain from Liverpool would be involved.
Alexander-Arnold is one of three big stars at Anfield, alongside Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk, who can hold talks with clubs outside England about a pre-contract agreement from January 1 and reports interest from Champions League holders Madrid has increased in recent weeks.
During the international break, influential Spanish magazine Marca reported that Los Blancos were making a concerted effort to make a move for Alexander-Arnold if they can legally speak to the England international in the new year, and the Reds defender’s future is also becoming a priority Daily talking point in English football media.
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Slot said such talks do not reach the dressing room and he expects to be kept updated on the club’s attempts to tie Alexander-Arnold, Salah and Van Dijk to new contracts at Anfield.
Although Slot has repeatedly missed the opportunity to report on the situation of the three players in question, claiming that it is not his domain as head coach, he insists that he will be involved in any negotiations alongside sporting director Richard Hughes , and believes in the maturity of Alexander-Arnold, as the club’s 26-year-old vice-captain, will make it easier for him to ignore the connections to the Santiago Bernabeu.
“I think you underestimate our players,” Slot said. “These players are used to being in touch with all the top clubs on a daily basis, regardless of whether they have a contract or not.
“If you think that these interests are going to bother them, then I don’t think you’re doing justice to how mentally strong they are and what they’re used to.”
“That’s part of our job. I was at Feyenoord last year and they connected me with a lot of clubs and before and before that. It’s part of this world we live in.”
“You just focus on what you have to do. If you are 17 or 18 years old, this might be difficult for you. But Trent won the league, won the Champions League, Virgil and Mo are the same.”
“I don’t think that’s a problem for them. That’s what we’re seeing at the moment because, to put it that way, they’re playing really well.”
“It’s difficult for me to judge. When people call me manager or head coach, it’s different than before. I’ve always been a head coach and I’ve always been involved in contract situations like, ‘Who do you want to extend?’
“I’m not the one who sits in front of the agents and talks about money. I don’t think Jürgen Klopp did that.” [at Liverpool]? I think there is no difference.
“I don’t know because I don’t know how it worked. I know we’ve been talking about this for a while.” [the job title] “Manager” or “Head Coach”. I said, “We’ve talked about it a little bit now, but to me it’s the same thing.”
Slot added: “It would be really strange.” [if I was not involved]. There is no sporting director in the world, even if you legally have no influence over him signing or extending a player you don’t want.
“People always talk about these things. The good thing about being a head coach is that when things like this happen, you can always say: ‘Go to the sports director!’
“No, for me [the contract situation] is not difficult [to deal with] Because I always focus on the short term and so I only focus on Chelsea. And the good thing is that all three players are available to me – but let’s wait and see [until after training on Friday].
“So no, the only thing is that every time it’s the same question, I can give the same answer! might bother me when I think about it: “Are they here or not?”
“But my main focus now is the short-term and I think football is all about the short-term – especially when you’re a manager. We also plan for the long term, but I can help Richard more with that.” My main focus is on the short term.
