Jamie Carragher shares Trent Alexander-Arnold Liverpool contract concerns - "not sure"

Jamie Carragher is losing confidence in Liverpool's efforts to re-sign Trent Alexander-Arnold, and wonders if the defender is considering a move away from his boyhood club.

Liverpool is potentially facing a crisis as Alexander-Arnold, Mohamed Salah, and Virgil van Dijk are all out of contract at the end of the season. After a quiet summer transfer window it was expected that Liverpool would prioritize sorting contract extensions for its biggest stars, but so far no progress has been made.

Losing Salah and Van Dijk would be a huge blow to Liverpool and new head coach Arne Slot, but letting Alexander-Arnold walk away for free would be catastrophic. The 25-year-old has always kept contract negotiations private throughout his career, but the defender has also been heavily linked with Real Madrid.

Carragher told Liverpool.com in an exclusive interview that Liverpool must prioritize signing Alexander-Arnold over anyone else but is concerned the longer negotiations drag on. "The priority is Trent. That for me is not even a question or a debate," Carragher said.

Arne Slot confirms what Jurgen Klopp told him about Liverpool is true amid Pep Guardiola admission

Michael Owen exclusive: 'This is my advice to Trent Alexander-Arnold if he wants Real Madrid transfer'

"The most important one to sign is Trent just because of the age factor and how much longevity you'll get out from him as a player as opposed to the other two. I was very confident they would all sign at the end of our season in the summer. I'm not so sure now, just because I'm thinking about what is the wait really if I'm being totally honest.

"I look at it and think, 'Well, okay, are they still arguing or negotiating over money?' Maybe for Mo and Virgil would it be a length of contract? Would the club be offering one, would they be wanting three or two, or the club offering two but they want three? You know, that type of thing.

"With Trent, I don't really know what the hold-up would be. I'm sure Liverpool is gonna make him one of the highest-paid players or maybe the highest-paid player at the club and in the Premier League. That's where he should be. He's that great of a talent. It's just whether he is looking at pastures new maybe.

"Because I'm sure top clubs would be sniffing around him. I think with the other two, yes they could leave on a free and go somewhere else, but I think it'd be difficult to go to many places better than Liverpool in terms of chances of winning the Champions League right now.

"I might be wrong, but I don't think sort of Real Madrid would be looking at Salah or Van Dijk and not because they're not good enough but just, you know, their age. But I would imagine they're looking at Trent. There's been rumors of that so I'm less comfortable.

"Listen, you have to be less confident the longer it goes on because the club wants nothing more than to announce that these three players have signed or certainly Trent has. No one wants this over their head or dragging on. So the longer it goes, the less confident I will be."

Alexander-Arnold has already established himself as one of the great Premier League right-backs and has won everything at Liverpool since being elevated to the first team by former boss Jurgen Klopp. Alexander-Arnold is now considered one of the best right-backs in the world, with his versatility a major selling point.

The 25-year-old drifts into midfield plays as a right-winger at times, and can create chances with ease due to his passing capabilities. Alexander-Arnold has 59 assists throughout his Premier League career, and 15 goals, but it's yet to be seen whether he will remain in England.