Liverpool already have Andy Robertson succession plan but new contract call is obvious

Paul Gorst takes a closer look at Andy Robertson’s contract situation at Liverpool

Twelve months ago, the interminable debate around Liverpool went on. With Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold all hurtling towards the final months of their respective deals at Anfield, the chatter around what would happen next grew to intense levels.

In full fairness, much of that discourse came about due to what was an exceptional campaign on the pitch, where few real issues were encountered en route to a 20th league title and a second Premier League crown in five years.

But nonetheless, barely a week went by without Arne Slot being asked about the future of his skipper, top scorer or vice-captain; three players who were totemic for a side who eventually won the Premier League by 10 points and with four games to spare.

This time around, it is Ibrahima Konate and Andy Robertson who find themselves in the same boat as their aforementioned team-mates, with the latter offering an update on his current situation when speaking after Monday night’s 4-1 win over Barnsley in the FA Cup.

“We’ll see what happens,” Robertson said. “We’ve had chats now which will remain private. I’ve spoken to them and we’ll see what happens. Would I like to stay? Yes, but it’s a difficult question to ask. I’ve got five months left and we need to see the option to stay or if there’s options to go and things like that.“I’ll sit down with my family and decide. After a stressful summer, I’m just trying to enjoy being a part of it, and being a Liverpool player. I wanted to qualify for the World Cup and thankfully we’ve managed to do that. I need to see what myself and my family wants moving forward.”

Liverpool’s succession plan for their legendary left-back came in the summer when they signed Milos Kerkez from Bournemouth at £40m to make him the most expensive full-back in Anfield history.

With Robertson, who was appointed as vice-captain by Slot after Alexander-Arnold joined Real Madrid at the end of his own Anfield terms, around to guide a player nine years his junior, Liverpool are well set when it comes to that position.

However, with just four Premier League starts to his name this term, the Scotland skipper has made no secret about his desire to feature more and he won’t be short of options at the end of the campaign, should a deal remain unsigned. He can, in fact, now speak to clubs outside of England about joining in the summer.

Atletico Madrid were interested in June and the “stressful summer”, which Robertson spoke of when he chatted on Monday night, was undoubtedly a hint to the agonising he did over his next move following the Kerkez capture.

However, the passing of Diogo Jota simply had to have had an influence and an impact on the thinking at the time. The former Hull City man has previously insisted his decision to stay was already made before the fatal car crash of July 3 that took the life of Jota, but it did reaffirm his belief that he needed to stick around for his friends, team-mates and colleagues at that traumatic time.

Robertson was one of a handful of Liverpool players who were present at Jota’s wedding, just days before his unimaginably sad death in northern Spain alongside his brother, Andre Silva.

Robertson’s social media epitaph to his good friend on the day his passing was reported was one of the most gut-wrenching of all the tributes that poured in and the emotion with which he spoke on the Instagram post leapt off the page when he described how the popular Portuguese was “bursting with love” on the day he married long-term partner Rute.

It simply has to be a key reason why the 31-year-old opted to stay put and while he might not have played as often as he would have liked, he remains an integral figure behind the scenes as one of the ‘old guard’ who have set the standards and fostered the culture for much of the last decade at Anfield.

That, even without accounting for his enduring quality, experience and know-how in big-game situations, shouldn’t be discarded too easily. In the Michael Edwards era, the key decision-makers are guided by the data and it’s perhaps why they have always been comfortable allowing the likes of Gini Wijnaldum, Roberto Firmino and James Milner, to name just three, to leave as free agents in the last few years.

The theory goes that such players are more valuable to the club for the final year of their contracts than they would be if sold at a cut-price deal, when an expensive replacement would often be needed.

That, perhaps, is where Liverpool might land on what to do where Robertson is concerned. While Kerkez is clearly the future at Anfield when it comes to the left-back position, allowing the Scot to walk away as a free agent would require a deputy to be brought in.

There is no guarantee that player in question is a better fit than Robertson and it would likely cost a fortune at a time when other areas of the squad need reupholstering.

It’s difficult to know which side of the court the ball is in right now over this particular impasse but it might be a case of sticking rather than twisting from Liverpool’s perspective.