Liverpool are ready to reward goalkeeper Alisson with a new contract in recognition of his impact since joining the club in 2018, even though his current deal still has three years left to run.
Along with Virgil van Dijk, Alisson was considered the final piece of the jigsaw when he arrived from Roma in what was then a world record transfer for a goalkeeper, with Liverpool going on to win the Champions League, FIFA Club World Cup and Premier League.
The Daily Telegraph writes that new contract talks with the 28-year-old Brazilian, who should now be reaching his peak as a goalkeeper, have been scheduled for before the start of next season.
It is said that Alisson’s sensational winning goal in stoppage time against West Brom at the weekend had no bearing on the planned contract talks, although it highlights the level of his overall impact.
Liverpool have been planning new contracts for both Alisson and Van Dijk for well over a year. 90min first revealed way back in March 2020 that the club had already been working hard to tie down their two major defensive assets to new long-term deals.
But with the football landscape changing dramatically at that time as a result of the coronavirus pandemic – Premier League football had just been shut down and would remain paused for nearly three months, while fans are only just now returning to stadiums in limited numbers – there was ultimately an unwillingness to go ahead with two big new contracts until things were clearer.
Liverpool’s finances have been badly hit by the pandemic, resulting in a £46m pre-tax loss for the 2019/20 season, despite significantly improved commercial performance. The club hierarchy had initially intended to make use of government support for businesses and furlough non-playing staff, although the strong public backlash to the news saw them perform a quick U-turn.
Finances are expected to have picked up a little this season and at least some of the shortfall for 2019/20 will be made up for in the 2020/21 books because the previous campaign’s delays had caused it to run over into the new accounting period.
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Source: 90min
