Arne Slot could FINALLY hand player a Liverpool squad place after a 5-year wait

Arne Slot could finally hand one Liverpool player a squad place after a five-year wait. Jurgen Klopp never found room.

Sky Sports claim that Arne Slot is willing to keep Sepp van den Berg in his Liverpool squad for next season. This comes as interest in the Dutch defender ramps up.

PSV Eindhoven have been heavily linked with a move for Van den Berg, for one. Mainz, where he spent last season on loan, very openly want a return, too.

And things could kick into gear from Monday. Liverpool will return from their tour of the USA and are expected to begin talks with clubs.

But the asking price for Van den Berg has been a problem. Neither PSV nor Mainz can afford the £20m Liverpool want for the defender and if neither stump up the cash, he won't be leaving.

Slot's willingness to keep Van den Berg allows this stance. It could well be that for the first time since moving to Merseyside five years ago, the player earns himself a place in Liverpool's first-team squad.

Sepp van den Berg's future

Of course, there's another side to this. It's entirely possible that Liverpool don't intend to keep Van den Berg and that claiming he could stay is a negotiation tactic.

After all, there's no chance of them ever getting that £20m if clubs know they actively want to sell the player.

It's a scare tactic, in other words, and one that might need to ease up later in the window. However, there's yet another side to this.

Joe Gomez's future is not clear and he could well leave Liverpool this summer. If he does, Van den Berg is a natural replacement as someone comfortable at centre-back and right-back. He'd be the fourth-choice option in the middle of defence and could fancy his chances at rivalling Jarell Quansah and Ibrahima Konaté.

In fact, if Gomez does leave, the chances of Van den Berg staying rise dramatically.