Richard Hughes must give Liverpool a £78m parting gift

Richard Hughes' time with Liverpool could come to and end this summer.

The sporting director has been linked with making a move to Al-Hilal in the near future with the Saudi Pro League club looking to bolster their recruitment staff.

Indeed, they've already signed a fair few big-name players such as Darwin Nunez and Karim Benzema but, with Hughes leading their recruitment, some even better players could be brought in.

This would obviously set Liverpool back a bit in the summer as Hughes does most of their transfer dealings, but his exit could be the start of another new era at L4.

However, before Hughes packs his bags and leaves, there's one parting gift that he could give Liverpool fans that would end his time with the club in the best possible way.

Richard Hughes must extend Dominik Szoboszlai's contract before he exits Anfield

It's hard to imagine where Liverpool would be without Dominik Szoboszlai this season.

The Hungarian has been the Reds' star man, no matter where Slot has chosen to start him.

His free-kicks have been on another level with his ability to create a chance out of nothing for his teammates second to none.

However, since his contract is set to expire in 2028, questions have started to arise about where the Hungarian's future lies.

Teams such as Real Madrid have long been linked with the 25-year-old and, even though the Reds would get a hefty fee for him, they can't really afford to lose him, no matter how much they're offered.

This is why, if Hughes does end up wanting to join Al-Hilal, he must ensure that Szoboszlai's future is secured at Anfield, otherwise, Liverpool could find themselves in a whole host of trouble.

Dominik Szoboszlai's demands are proving to be a bit of a problem for Liverpool

The fact that Liverpool have just extended Ryan Gravenberch's stay proves that they have money to burn.

The Dutchman is more than deserving of his new contract but, with how important Szoboszlai has been for Liverpool this season, it feels like extending Gravenberch's contract before the Hungarian's could have been a bit of a blunder.

The former Bayern Munich man is now earning around £275,000-per-week thanks to his new deal which puts him among the Reds' highest earners.

This deal will obviously set the precedent for future contracts and, since Szoboszlai has been in much better form than Gravenberch this term, it's clear that he's going to want even more than that.

At the moment, the midfielder's demands are sitting at around £300,000-per-week for the next five years which is obviously a massive amount of money.

However, with how important he's been for Liverpool this season, the £78 million that they'd spend on keeping the Hungarian in L4 for the next five years is more than worth it.

And, that's because, if the club wanted to try and replace him, they'd have to spend an awful lot more than that just bringing them to the club, never mind the extra money they'd have to pay for their contract.

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