Liverpool FC News recap: UEFA shambles as Reds set for £48m WINDFALL

Here's your daily Liverpool news recap for December 11.

Mo Salah and Virgil Van Dijk just made Richard Hughes' decision easy

One of the most startling things about the contract fiasco that Liverpool find themselves in with Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk is that the two players haven’t exactly been hiding that they’re good.

They have, for over six years now, consistently been the best players on the pitch for the Reds. Their contracts were allowed to dwindle due to being the two highest-paid players at the club alongside the fact that they are both in their early-30s.

Yet, even though it is a ‘contract year’, both players are playing at the level that we have come to expect - that is to say, world-beating.

Just today, Salah was named PFA Player of the Month for November, meanwhile, yesterday Van Dijk was named in the FIFPro Men’s 11, a lineup of the best players in the world as voted for by professional footballers around the world.

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Advantage Liverpool in contract talks after Marcus Rashford bombshell

Liverpool are firing on all cylinders in the Premier League and Champions League this season.

Arne Slot is getting the best out of the squad already at his disposal, only recruiting Federico Chiesa during his first transfer window.

Instead of acquiring new talents in the market, Slot has instead set about improving the performances of those already on the books.

Players like Ibrahima Konate and Ryan Gravenberch have taken their games to another level while the Reds’ strike line has been effective all season long.

Both Mohamed Salah and Luis Diaz are facing uncertainty regarding their contracts and both are favoured by the same team.

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Arne Slot is walking straight into a crisis and now he knows it

Much was made of Liverpool’s intense run of fixtures after the October international break where they would face the likes of Chelsa, Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen, Real Madrid and Manchester City.

And while the Reds overcame that massive run of fixtures earlier in the season relatively unscathed, perhaps the run upcoming is going to be even tougher.

Starting with Fulham on Saturday, Liverpool will face FIVE matches in a little over two weeks; four in the Premier League and one in the EFL Cup. And with certain players beginning to tire - and a lack of alternatives available - this Liverpool squad is going to be tested to their very limits.

No Conor Bradley and Kostas Tsimikas means Trent and Andy Robertson will probably have to play every minute of every game on the flanks. No Ibrahima Konate means Gomez or Quansah will play at centre-back even though neither looks up to it right now. And in midfield, Slot best be cautious about getting diminishing returns from his preferred rotating cast of four players.

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Liverpool goalkeeper's nightmare season continues

Liverpool’s goalkeeping situation has been well established as problematic this season, despite their embarrassment of riches.

The awkward situation itself arose from the club’s decision to sign Giorgi Mamardashvili from Valencia on a delayed transfer that will see him move to Merseyside for the start of the 2025/26 season.

That clearly indicated that Liverpool were set on letting Caoimhin Kelleher leave and moving on from Alisson sooner rather than later.

Subsequently, Mamardashvili has had the season from hell before he finally leaves Spain.

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Liverpool set for £48m WINDFALL

Just for qualifying for the Champions League 'play-off stage' - the main tournament - Liverpool will have received £15.34m (€18.62m).

In addition, there are a number of bonuses attached to the 'league phase' of the competition - the 32-team league table, where each team plays eight games that have been decided by a computer.

Per win, Liverpool stand to receive £1.73m (€2.1m), and after last night's win over Girona - making it six wins from six - the team currently has £10.38m (€12.6m), with the additional prospect of £3.46m (€4.2m), should the Reds win their remaining two games against Lille and PSV.

That would make the total amount of win bonuses stand at £13.84m (€16.8m).

Then your final position in the 'league phase' is taken into account. Last place (36th) will receive £226.6k (€275k), and additional £226.6k is received for each position in the table you climb, so a first-place finish for Liverpool would result in 36 payments of £226.6k - which would amount to £8.16m (€9.9m).

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UEFA and Premier League set to SCREW Liverpool over

As one of Europe's elite, Liverpool often have a ludicrously packed fixture schedule every year.

Playing in the Champions League, the Premier League, the EFL Cup and the FA Cup, it can often be hard to fit everything in, without risking player welfare.

A number of players have already come down with significant injuries this season, including Harvey Elliott, Alisson Becker, Diogo Jota and Ibrahima Konate, to name a few.

Finding a starting XI that has the required fitness to play at their best is incredibly hard and Arne Slot will be frustrated at the thought of having yet another game on his plate, that couldn't be played through no fault of his own.

Of course, the Merseyside Derby had to be cancelled and postponed last weekend because of Storm Darragh's high winds that presented a safety risk to players and attendees at the game.

At the time, this looked as though it might be a blessing in disguise - Liverpool had a number of players missing through injury and the team had just come off the back of a tiring few weeks of relentless fixtures against top opposition.

However, as we now look to when the game at Goodison Park could actually be played, Liverpool might find themselves on the bitter end of a diplomatic judgment call.

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