Liverpool face transfer dilemma that could change everything

Despite the transfer window slamming shut at the end of August, the rumour mill has never stopped turning.

Liverpool spent over £150 million on new players in the summer and, even though all four of them have had a solid impact on the Reds since they were brought in, it's clear that many issues are still plaguing Andoni Iraola's squad.

Right now, they're fourth in the Premier League and find themselves nine points adrift of first-placed Arsenal.

And, even though Iraola is doing everything he can to get his men back on track, nothing would help them more than adding a couple of new players to their ranks.

The January transfer window is now just around the corner which is where Liverpool will be given their best chance to improve things and get them back to the top of the Premier League table but, before that can happen, some tough decisions will need to be made.

Liverpool must figure out if they want to keep Virgil van Dijk or use one of their wonderkids

Virgil van Dijk's contract is set to expire in June 2027.

The towering Dutchman is still one of Liverpool's most important players and, without him, Liverpool would be nowhere near as good as they are.

Van Dijk may be 35 years old but, the fact that he's still an elite-level player proves how good he actually is.

In fact, Jeremy Jacquet has even claimed that he's lucky to be able to play alongside the Liverpool captain.

But, thanks to his age, some questions have arisen about whether he can continue performing to this level for much longer.

This has led to new centre-backs being linked with Liverpool as potential replacements.

No deals have been made just yet but, a new update from The Athletic has just given fans a good idea about how far off Liverpool believe the other centre-backs among their ranks are from their captain.

"Jeremy Jacquet has enjoyed an excellent start to his Anfield career, but the 21-year-old Frenchman has admitted he feels fortunate to be playing alongside Van Dijk," they wrote.

"There are high hopes for young centre-backs Giovanni Leoni (19 years old), Ifeanyi Ndukwe and Mor Talla Ndiaye (both 18), but they are still learning their trade.

"With Joe Gomez also out of contract next summer and a decision to be made over whether Liverpool trigger their €55million (£46m; $61m) option to buy loanee Ronald Araujo from Barcelona, it is hard to envisage a scenario where waving goodbye to Van Dijk next May would make any possible sense. He is still unequivocally elite."

Liverpool must figure out their plans for the next few years

Right now, Iraola seems to be locked in with Liverpool for the long-run.

The Spaniard has done a fairly decent job at Anfield since taking over from Arne Slot so, at least the Reds are sorted in that department.

However, within their first-team squad, many different question marks are hanging over the heads of certain players.

These questions are making it hard for Iraola and Julian Ward to future-proof their squad which is why it's essential for decisions such as the future of Van Dijk to be confirmed as soon as possible.

If they don't manage to do this and leave things until April again as they did when Van Dijk's contract was last set to expire, they'll just be making things harder for themselves.

And, since they look unlikely to win the Premier League title this season, that'll almost certainly be their main goal next term.

So, for them to do this, they need a smooth transitional period and a clear idea of what moves they want to make in the summer.

Without this, they could end up doing even worse than they currently are and end up missing out on extending the stay of Van Dijk at Anfield.