Three new clubs ENTER the race to sign Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold

Having let players' contracts run down, Liverpool are now at risk of losing some of their star players this season.

While this can partly be attributed to the lack of stability in the club's hierarchy, fans will not be accepting of excuses if contract negotiations fail to produce a positive outcome.

Alongside the speculation surrounding Mohamed Salah and Virgil Van Dijk for this very reason, is the issue regarding Trent Alexander-Arnold.

At just 26, and the best homegrown talent the club has produced in a decade, Trent's loss would be a real gut punch, in respect of the remarkable talent the club would lose and that he is entering the prime of his career.

Nonetheless, Liverpool have put themselves in this deeply frustrating position and the race to secure Trent's signature for the future is heating up.

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Trent's three new potential suitors

For months now, the focus has been on Real Madrid's interest in Trent, given the relationship he has with fellow countryman Jude Bellingham and the Spanish club's illustrious heritage in Europe for winning silverware.

However, when the footballing calendar reaches January 1, the Scouser will be able to negotiate with any club he likes to secure his long-term future away from Merseyside, should Liverpool's negotiations prove unsuccessful or if the player prefers a new challenge.

As such, it seems clear that Real Madrid would not be the only club vying for Trent's services and so the race to sign Trent will be hotting up in the coming months.

Speaking to Rousing the Kop, journalist Graeme Bailey has suggested that Trent has three further clubs that have already said to be lurking around a potential move.

He said: "Liverpool are still hopeful that he’ll sign and that’s the message coming from the club. From what I’m told he hasn’t triggered talks with other clubs yet, that is true.

"[However] I’m told that if Trent does indicate that he’s ready to go, it isn’t as simple as to say he’s going to go to Real Madrid. Clearly they have an interest but there will be other teams in there. I’m told that Barcelona would be in for him, PSG, Bayern Munich as well."

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While each of the prospective suitors are elite clubs in Spain, Germany and France, Liverpool have been able to successfully challenge for the Premier League and in Europe for several years now, so a move away from Merseyside would not be a straightforward decision.

As speculation surrounds the deal, nothing is agreed yet so it's not quite time to panic. But should Trent decide to walk away from negotiations with Liverpool, he will not be short of options to choose from, even though Real Madrid are leading the way on the balance of probabilities.