Confirmation of Mohamed Salah's contract extension is still some time away, while Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold are at vastly different stages in negotiations, according to Reds transfer expert David Lynch.

Liverpool beat Girona 1-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday evening and all but booked their place in the round of 16.

Salah's second-half penalty was his 50th European goal for the Reds and was another reminder that Arne Slot simply cannot afford to lose the attacker in the summer when his contract expires.

Reports emerged this week that the club had tabled an offer to the Egyptian, but despite his confidence that a deal would be struck, Lynch tempered expectations of when an agreement would be reached.

Speaking to Sports Mole about the reports that the Reds had offered Salah a contract, he said: "I'd urge caution around that - we're still a while away. It's without a doubt a positive step forward that an offer's been made because Liverpool wouldn't be doing that if [they weren't] close to agreement on what they want.

"It moves them a little bit further down the road, but I still think there's quite a lot to thrash out. I still think this is a really complex one, but it's good in that it probably stops Mo having to come out every week to demand he gets that offer.

"He's just desperate to stay, and Liverpool just can't afford to lose someone who's this influential. He might not be as influential in a couple of seasons time, but he certainly will be for next season, so it's just imperative that you keep him. So it is overall a positive, but we are a little while away from any conclusion on this."

Considering that Salah has scored 13 and assisted eight of Liverpool's 29 Premier League goals, losing the Egyptian would be an enormously damaging blow.

What about Virgil van Dijk?

Reports also emerged this month that said captain Van Dijk had been offered a contract, and Lynch believes that an announcement could be imminent.

Lynch told Sports Mole: "[Van Dijk's extension] seems like the easiest one of the three to get done. Again, desperation on his side to stay, wages not as outrageous as Salah's.

"I would be surprised if that's not the first that gets done. An offer has been made, been turned down, but again, that's just a step along the road. They are getting a little bit closer. I'd think that will be the first one.

"If Virgil had signed his contract already, [Liverpool woudln't] be able to keep a lid on that. It'd be very, very difficult. It will [be announced] as soon as it gets done and it could be in the next few days. It'll be out there and we'll all know about it."

The 33-year-old centre-back has shown little sign of decline as he has aged, and he has already helped Liverpool keep 12 clean sheets after 22 matches under Slot, a figure that the Reds only reached after 40 games in 2023-24.

Trent Alexander-Arnold updates

There have been rumours that Alexander-Arnold has been seduced by the prospect of playing for Real Madrid, and while Lynch acknowledged the validity of the links, he believes that it is in the defender's best interests to use the Spanish giants as leverage in negotiations.

When asked by Sports Mole about the impact of losing Trent to Los Blancos, Lynch said: "There'd be no way of sugar coating losing a local legend who's coming into his prime years. That would just be really, really bad, to be honest.

"The Real Madrid threat is there and he hasn't knocked that down, but it wouldn't make sense for him to do that, to knock it down, to come out and say 'I definitely want to stay at Liverpool, I've no interest in going to Real Madrid' because his contract discussions are confrontational. He's got to use that threat. He's got to leverage it to get the best contract he possibly can.

"I don't think we will [hear anything] until there's a conclusion either way on the contract, but again, it's one of those things I wouldn't worry about too much. He is talking to Liverpool. He hasn't told them he wants to leave, and it's just about can [Liverpool] get through those contract talks and get this deal finally thrashed out? I'm still optimistic that they will."

Liverpool's season has been overwhelmingly positive, and they are quite rightly clear favourites to win the Premier League, but fans would feel even more confident if the club at least managed to sign one of Salah, Van Dijk or Trent to a new deal before the January transfer window opens.