Dave Hendrick: Liverpool Cannot Afford to Lose Salah and Van Dijk | OneFootball

Virgil van Dijk and Mo Salah: Liverpool’s Uncertain Future

Liverpool’s journey under Arne Slot is about to enter a pivotal phase, with question marks hanging over two of their biggest names—Virgil van Dijk and Mo Salah. As Dave Hendrick analysed on The Daily Red podcast for Anfield Index, these two players are irreplaceable figures in the squad, and their future at the club remains a pressing concern.

Liverpool’s Heavy Reliance on Mo Salah

Dave Hendrick was unequivocal in his assessment of Liverpool’s attacking options. “We’ve scored a ton of goals right, but Mo is responsible for such a disproportionate amount of them,” he said, emphasising Salah’s overwhelming influence on the team’s goal output.

The issue, as Hendrick sees it, is that opponents are no longer afraid of Liverpool’s other forwards. “Nobody is scared of Luis Díaz. Nobody is scared of Jota. Nobody is scared of Darwin Núñez.” While Salah continues to produce, the supporting cast has failed to inspire fear in defenders the way Liverpool’s previous forward lines did.

Comparing the current setup to Liverpool’s prime attacking trios, Hendrick pointed out how defenders used to be wary of all three threats. “You go back and look at the Salah, Bobby, Mané front three—teams were terrified of them because all of them could score and create.” The concern now is that if Salah is contained, Liverpool struggle to break teams down.

Virgil van Dijk’s Future: No Clear Successor

While Salah dominates the headlines in attack, Virgil van Dijk’s situation is just as critical. Hendrick made it clear that replacing Van Dijk is not a simple task: “Who do you buy to replace Virgil van Dijk? Outside of Bastoni, who I don’t think is for sale, and if he is, he’s going to cost 80, 85 million. I don’t know where you look.”

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Liverpool’s defensive structure has been built around Van Dijk’s leadership and composure. Losing him would leave a gap that even the club’s famed recruitment team may struggle to fill. “Branthwaite is good, but he’s not Van Dijk,” Hendrick remarked, shutting down one of the few plausible options in the market.

Contract Situation Must Be Resolved

For Hendrick, the answer is clear—Liverpool must tie down their two most experienced players. “Mo and Virgil—the contracts have to get done. They have to get done. You cannot afford to replace them.” His concern isn’t just about the financial burden of replacing world-class players, but the difficulty of finding genuine like-for-like replacements.

As Hendrick pointed out, Liverpool have needed an overhaul in midfield and full-back positions, but their priority should be keeping the spine of the team intact. “It is the most important thing that can happen—that Virgil and Mo extend.”

Liverpool’s Attack Needs an Overhaul

While retaining Salah is crucial, Hendrick believes Liverpool cannot go into the next season with the same forward line. “It feels like the attack needs a significant overhaul this summer,” he stated, adding that Liverpool “need to bring in two more starters to replace Darwin and Díaz and a depth attacker to replace Jota.”

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His suggestion? A major shake-up in Liverpool’s recruitment strategy. “If these lads can’t find better options than Darwin and Díaz for the money they’ll get for them, which I would guess would be 75 million for Darwin, 50 to 55 for Díaz, I’d be confident in Edwards and Co having the ability to find better players.”

Conclusion

With the summer window approaching, Liverpool are faced with a crucial decision—secure the futures of Salah and Van Dijk, or prepare for the unenviable task of replacing them. As Hendrick put it bluntly, “It is the most important thing that can happen—that Virgil and Mo extend.” If they don’t, Liverpool will be left scrambling for alternatives in a market where world-class replacements are rare and expensive.