After Virgil van Dijk confirmed contract talks were ongoing, fans can have confidence that the Liverpool captain will renew terms at Liverpool due to his deal being more straightforward than extensions for Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold, according to Reds expert David Lynch.
Arne Slot took over at Anfield from legendary boss Jurgen Klopp in the summer, with many expecting that the Dutchman would find it hard to replace the charismatic German.
However, Slot has won 11 of his 12 games in charge this term, and the Reds are already first in the Premier League, one point ahead of second-placed Manchester City and four points ahead of third-placed Arsenal.
Though the team have been a remarkable success on the pitch so far, the Reds boss continues to deal with the headache of arguably his three best players being out of contract at the end of the season.
Mohamed Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk will leave the club for free as things stand, with fans desperate for the trio to stay.
Lynch has provided encouraging updates about the situation regarding captain van Dijk, who himself confirmed he was in negotiations with the club over a new contract following the side's 2-1 win against Chelsea last Sunday.
Speaking to Sports Mole, Lynch was hopeful that the defender would extend his stay on Merseyside, saying: "I was part of the group of journalists who spoke to Virgil after the game about that. And yeah, he wasn't really giving too much away in terms of, you know, how it was progressing and whether he felt it was going to get signed. But I still think it's a massive positive that those talks are now being confirmed as ongoing, because I think the last time we asked him about it was at one of the pre-season games against Sevilla, and at that point he said there were no talks ongoing.
"So, it is a step forward. It is a positive. Again, with that one, I do, you know, I tend towards optimism on that one as well. I would say on the basis that I think Virgil has made it very clear to us whenever he spoke to us in the mix zone, you know, since last season really, that he would love to stay at Liverpool. He's very happy there. He wants to keep being captain. He's very settled in the city."
'Straightforward one for Liverpool'
Lynch noted that he was somewhat optimistic that an agreement would be reached in large part because he feels that Van Dijk's contract renewal was far less complicated than potential deals for Salah and Alexander-Arnold.
"Wage-wise, he's not near a Mo Salah in terms of he's not near that £350,000 a week. I wouldn't expect he would necessarily need a bump in terms of wages. So, I think it's a straightforward one for Liverpool to do.
"The desire is there on the club's side and the player's side. I think possibly of the three, it's maybe the most straightforward, actually. And so, yeah, I'm hopeful that one will get done as well, to be honest."
Salah has long been courted by clubs in the Saudi Pro League, and should he leave for free he will no doubt have offers on the table from a host of teams, while Real Madrid's admiration of Alexander-Arnold has been well documented.
Though Van Dijk would have his pick of clubs should he depart the Reds for free in the summer, he has yet to be consistently linked to another team in the manner of the other two stars, and the lack of links away has given some fans optimism that the Dutchman is more likely to renew than either Salah or Trent.