Jurgen Klopp believes his new Liverpool deal won't be 'decisive' on Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane's contract talks
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp signed a two-year extension this week to stay at Anfield until 2026; Liverpool stars Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Naby Keita all have contracts which expire next summer
Saturday 30 April 2022 11:04, UK
Jurgen Klopp believes his new Liverpool deal won't be a "decisive" factor on whether Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane will commit their long-term futures to the club.
The pair, along with striker Roberto Firmino and midfielder Naby Keita, have contracts which expire next summer and negotiations have dragged on for some time.
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Klopp signed a new two-year extension to his contract at Anfield on Thursday which was due to expire in 2024, but with the German now staying until 2026, will his Liverpool stars be convinced to sign too?
"That is more a question for the boys, what it exactly means for them but all fine, my relationship with them is great,” he said.
"My point is in life there are more important things to think about, not only who is the manager but knowing who the manager and coaching staff is is an important thing because when you know what you have with other clubs where you could go, you don’t know exactly.
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"There is no 100 per cent in this business but I think it is pretty likely I will stay for a little bit longer because other coaches are there at other clubs.
"If it is a positive sign for the boys, great, but I don’t think this will be the one decisive thing for whatever decision they want to make.
"It is their own life but we just wanted to guarantee that everyone who wants to be here knows what he can expect."
Salah’s contract negotiations have dragged on for several months with the Egypt international stressing last week money is not everything when it comes to extending his stay on Merseyside.
Asked whether players in the past had spoken to him about his own future before committing theirs, Klopp added: “That happened as well. I don’t judge loyalty because of these kind of things.
"From my side yes, if I commit, I commit but I know a player’s career is 15 years and I have great relationships today with former players of mine who wanted to leave in specific moments when I thought, ‘that’s a shame you go now’.
"If a player tells you early enough he wants to go then you have to deal with it: Is there a club that wants him, is there a transfer fee?
"If a player is coming at the last moment and tells you on Sunday when the transfer window closes on the Monday ‘By the way, I can’t stay here’ then (it’s) ‘Sorry my friend, that’s not possible’.
"To plan we need decisions at a specific point and that’s what we are working on.
"But I don’t judge people if they are loyal or not if they say during a contract ‘I want to go somewhere else and see what the weather is like or how the grass is there’.
"That’s not the case. I think you see loyalty in other areas."
Klopp: This is only the start
Klopp has masterminded Liverpool onto the cusp of an unprecedented quadruple, but he believes signing a contract extension is the start of a new era at the club.
“We don’t think about changing the team in the next two or three years or whatever, but you have to prepare the little things so that you are ready for the future as well,” he said.
“That’s why I really think it’s a really good place to be or a good place to join, if not the perfect place.
“We cannot wait 10 years. We have to do it now. It’s no threat. This is only the start, to be honest. That’s the plan, that we really, really go for it.
“There’s nothing guaranteed, it’s why we have to enjoy the journey. The journey so far is a great one but we don’t know if we will win anything.”
Liverpool's fixture schedule:
April 30 - Newcastle (a) Premier League
May 3 - Villarreal (a) Champions League SF second leg
May 7 - Tottenham (h) Premier League
May 10 - Aston Villa (a) Premier League, live on Sky Sports
May 14 - Chelsea (Wembley) FA Cup final
May 17 - Southampton (a) Premier League, live on Sky Sports
May 22 - Wolves (h) Premier League
May 28 - Champions League final *
* Subject to progress
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