Liverpool have scheduled a new round of contract talks with right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold, according to a report.
The 25-year-old has now entered the final 18 months of his existing Anfield deal, and it was reported earlier this season that talks would soon get underway over an extension.
From Liverpool's side, there are no concerns about a potential failure to agree a new deal with Alexander-Arnold, who was promoted to vice-captain by Jurgen Klopp last summer.
However, as things stand, the right-back will become a free agent at the end of the 2024-25 season, and foreign clubs will be able to enter pre-contract talks with his camp in the next January transfer window.
Alexander-Arnold has not penned a renewal at Anfield since the summer of 2021, but according to Football Insider, Liverpool have now pencilled in another round of negotiations with his entourage.
The report adds that the two parties did engage in discussions during the autumn months, and while no agreement was struck back then, the Reds are confident of tying their boyhood star down to new terms this time around.
There is optimism that Alexander-Arnold will commit his future to the club before the summer transfer window opens, and he can expect a wage increase to bring him in line with the club's highest-paid players.
The England international is already believed to be pocketing around £180,000 a week at Anfield, but Liverpool are prepared to bump his wages up to over £200,000 a week to secure his long-term future.
Alexander-Arnold is celebrating his 20th anniversary as a Liverpool player this year, having joined the Reds' academy in 2004, and he now boasts 300 senior appearances for Klopp's side in all tournaments.
The right-back has scored 18 goals and set up 81 more in that time, winning seven separate major honours, although his thunder has since been stolen by the up-and-coming Conor Bradley.
Since suffering a knee injury against Arsenal in the FA Cup on January 7, Alexander-Arnold has not made a starting lineup for Liverpool, being restricted to minutes off the bench against Norwich City and Chelsea.
Bradley was given the nod at right-back for both of those contests and put in a man-of-the-match display against Chelsea, scoring his first Liverpool goal while also setting up strikes for Diogo Jota and Dominik Szoboszlai.
Owing to Bradley's exceptional form and Alexander-Arnold's return to fitness, Klopp faced a fascinating selection dilemma for Sunday's Premier League clash with Arsenal, although it was announced on Saturday that Bradley's father tragically lost his life after an illness.
As a result, Alexander-Arnold is expected to return to the starting lineup at the Emirates, where a win for Liverpool would see them open up an eight-point lead over Arsenal, Aston Villa and Manchester City, who are back in action away to Brentford on Monday. body check tags ::
