Liverpool star's contract standoff is a WARNING to Richard Hughes

It was reported earlier this week that Caoimhin Kelleher would REJECT the chance to sign a new contract at Liverpool.

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The 26-year-old goalkeeper is the long-term understudy to Alisson Becker, filling in well whenever the Brazilian No1 has been unfit or unavailable.

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However, it is only natural that the Irishman sees a future for himself as a first-choice in his own right but the indications are that it won’t be at Anfield.

No team came forward with a sufficient offer last summer, despite Kelleher’s willingness to leave. As such he had to stay put because Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes wouldn’t compromise on a reported £30 million asking price.

But now Kelleher is one year closer to his contract expiration date of 2026. Whatever chance Liverpool had of getting anywhere close to £30m have surely evaporated now that he has indicated he won’t renew.

So the Reds have been forced into an awkward situation. They must sell Kelleher for a diminished fee, keep him until the summer of 2026 and lose him on a free or else guarantee him first-team football.

Given that they have just signed Giorgi Mamardashvili for around £29m - and Alisson is under contract until 2027 - there is little possibility of that happening.

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So it looks like Hughes will have to take LESS than what he believes Kelleher is worth or else lose him for nothing a year later.

And this should be a warning to the sporting director with several uncertain contract situations presenting themselves. The die has been cast with Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold, whose terms all run out in summer 2025.

Beyond that, Ibrahima Konate is - like Kelleher - out of contract in 2026. So far the club have been unable to persuade him to sign a new deal.

And just around the corner in 2027 Liverpool will have to deal with the unfolding situations over Conor Bradley, Harvey Elliott and Curtis Jones.

All three could best be described as squad players right now, even if Jones is closer to a first choice than the other two.

If Liverpool go ahead and sign a new right-back in the event of Alexander-Arnold leaving then surely Bradley would be disincentivised to sign a new deal.

That, in turn, would bring his transfer value right down.

Will Elliott sign new deal?

There have been rumblings over a new deal for Elliott too, who has yet to truly convince Arne Slot of his merits. Again with several others in his preferred position, Elliott could opt to run his deal down and deny Liverpool a decent sum in the transfer market.

Reports of interest from other Premier League clubs in Jones have also been out there for a while with the 24-year-old on the periphery of the first-team picture under Slot.

It looks like Dominik Szoboszlai is the preferred option for the advanced midfield position, where Jones has performed best.

That means that Liverpool could be forced into a use-them-or-lose-them scenario with Bradley, Elliott AND Jones.

Losing all three would also come with the added blow of reducing the number of homegrown players at the club - something that needs to be continually monitored.

These are negotiations that will need to be handled delicately as all these players know they can follow the examples of this summer’s expected departures, as well as Konate and Kelleher.

It puts pressure on the club to clarify their roles in the team long-term, handing an edge to the players in any prospective talks.

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Richard Hughes had a difficult task straight away in trying to organise new deals for - perhaps - his three best players. The situation doesn’t look like it’s going to get any easier over the next couple of summers.

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Liverpool’s game against Wolves will kick-off at 14:00 GMT on Sunday 16th February.

The game will be broadcast live on Sky Sports Premier League, Sky Sports Main Event and Ultra HD.

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