Liverpool have had some fantastic players and enjoyed plenty of success in the last decade. In recent years, they have gradually said goodbye to Georginio Wijnaldum, James Milner, Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, Sadio Mané and Roberto Firmino, but they have also retained a number of their established stars.
Alisson, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson and Mohamed Salah would all be in the conversation when it comes to selecting an all-time Liverpool XI. That is quite the achievement considering the club’s rich heritage and, as recently as last season, all five were still at the club as Liverpool strolled to the Premier League title.
Alexander-Arnold left for Real Madrid last summer, Salah and Robertson will depart at the end of this season, there are question marks over the future of Alisson (despite his one-year option being triggered and with links to Juventus gathering pace) and Van Dijk turns 35 this summer and then enters the final year of his contract.
Arne Slot has commented multiple times on the importance of a team staying together and how settled squads produce consistent performances. Liverpool have proven that in recent years. They won the league in Slot’s first season after only making one signing the previous summer in Federico Chiesa, and only losing two senior players, Thiago Alcântara and Joël Matip, neither of whom played much in their final campaign at Anfield. However, until scientists discover the secrets to age-reversing technology, the passage of time is inevitable and all good things must come to an end.
Liverpool have struggled this season, and not just because Alexander-Arnold and Luis Díaz departed. The tragic loss of Diogo Jota last July was devastating for everyone at the club, while injuries, slow starts for several new signings, and too many players being in poor form at the same time have held them back.
With at least two more legends on their way out this summer, it feels like the end of an era. Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Van Dijk, Robertson and Salah were all a big part of last season’s title-winning squad, and their experience of winning it five years earlier no doubt helped.
They are all in the top 12 for Premier League appearances for Liverpool, and are also all in the top eight for Champions League appearances for the club. Salah (313) and Robertson (273) are fifth and seventh, respectively, for most Premier League appearances for Liverpool. Alexander-Arnold had 259 before he departed for Madrid (10th most).
It’s not just their individual experience, but their experience of playing alongside one another. Robertson and Salah have played 257 Premier League games together; only 15 duos have played together more in Premier League history. That’s more often than Leighton Baines and Phil Jagielka for Everton (252), Michael Carrick and Wayne Rooney for Manchester United (247), and David Seaman and Lee Dixon for Arsenal (243).
Van Dijk will undoubtedly miss Robertson and Salah. The Dutchman has played 246 Premier League games alongside Salah, spraying countless cross-field balls to the Egyptian from left to right, and 219 games next to Robertson in Liverpool’s back four. Alisson has played with Salah 236 times in the Premier League, Robertson 213 times, and Van Dijk 212 times, having already lost Alexander-Arnold, with whom he played 206 times. Building up that rapport matters. Getting used to the league is one thing, but learning how to play with your teammates is equally as important.
Florian Wirtz arrived to great fanfare last summer and he has enjoyed good moments, but he is still getting used to playing in a different system with different players. The same is true of Alexander Isak, who had already played and scored plenty of times in the Premier League when he arrived at Anfield. While fitness and injuries have not helped the Swede, he also doesn’t look to be on the same wavelength as his teammates yet. Wirtz and Isak scored in Liverpool’s 3-1 win over Crystal Palace last Saturday, which hinted at progress, but that familiarity will only come with more games.
Milos Kerkez arrived from Bournemouth last summer to be Robertson’s long-term replacement at left-back and, after a slow start, the Hungarian has grown into the role in recent months. Robertson has shown in recent weeks that he can still offer plenty when called upon, though, and having him to deputise for Kerkez has been invaluable as Liverpool have cemented their place in the top five in the Premier League.
This is not to say that Liverpool have made the wrong moves. Wirtz, Isak and Kerkez came in last summer along with Jeremie Frimpong, Giorgi Mamardashvili and Hugo Ekitiké, and all have at least shown glimpses of what they can do, though unfortunately Ekitiké will be out for several months with a ruptured Achilles.
Turnover is necessary for any squad, and there are strong arguments that it is the right time for Salah and Robertson to leave. However, Liverpool are still relying on experience. Van Dijk has made more appearances than any of his teammates this season in the league (34), and the joint-most in all competitions alongside Alexis Mac Allister (51).
Not including stoppage time, the Liverpool captain has played 4,581 minutes in all competitions, the most of any player from Europe’s top five leagues. It’s already more minutes than any Liverpool player accrued in the whole of the 2024-25 season, when Salah racked up the most (4,497).
Salah went off with a hamstring issue in the win over Palace on Saturday, though he will be fit to take the field at least one more time before the end of the season. He could therefore add to his none-too-shabby 257 goals in 440 games for the club. He has scored 46 of Liverpool’s 214 goals (excluding own goals) under Slot, or 21.5%. That is a lot of goals to be losing and this season has shown how difficult things can be when he is not finding the net.
Liverpool have lost experienced players before, though. The two players to have played together the most in Premier League history are Jamie Carragher and Steven Gerrard (383 games). Carragher left in the summer of 2013, and Gerrard moved on two years later. The year after Carragher departed, Liverpool almost won the league; Gerrard left just before the Jürgen Klopp era, which brought so much success.
Obviously, that was not because Carragher and Gerrard left. The main reason Liverpool didn’t win the title in 2013-14 was because they conceded 50 goals, and Klopp has said several times how much he would have loved to have worked with Gerrard.
Of the current squad, after Salah, Robertson, Van Dijk and Alisson, it is Curtis Jones who has the most appearances for the club (224), and he’s also being linked with a move away in the summer – strangely enough, because he isn’t getting enough games. Between the four of them, Salah, Robertson, Van Dijk and Alisson have 1,518 appearances for Liverpool. That’s more than the rest of their teammates (who have played at least one senior game this season) combined (1,494).
There is experience in the squad. Kerkez, Mac Allister and Isak all had a decent amount of Premier League experience before joining. But players need time to develop an understanding of their roles and what it takes to represent the club, to carry the expectations, and perform for a passionate fanbase that will hold them to the highest standards but love them beyond reason if they meet those standards.
The problem is, you can’t sign that. You have to develop it. Van Dijk can carry the mantle for another season, and Liverpool may hold on to Alisson. Speaking to the media recently, Van Dijk said about Alisson’s future: “There is always going to be a day where you will go. But if it’s going to happen – and I have no idea about his future and I don’t think at this point he has an idea about it – then we will, as a club, adapt to that.
“We have been through everything together, positive things and some negative things unfortunately as well, so it would definitely be a big blow and a miss. He’s very important for me as one of the leaders in the team and he is very important on the pitch because he is one of the best – in my opinion the best – goalkeeper in the world.”
Liverpool currently have four players who have made at least 300 appearances for the club. By the start of the 2027-28 season, they might not have any. Will losing that much experience so quickly make their rebuild even more difficult, or will it help them fast-track a tricky process? Fans often fear change but it is necessary. Liverpool have to build new stars and hope that, when they leave the club years from now, we will have this exact conversation again.
This is an article by Opta Analyst
