Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk's contract expires next summer, and both he and the club have a decision to make about whether he finishes his career at Anfield, BBC Sport reported. The 35-year-old insisted this week that he was in no panic. "Let's see what the season brings. I've had an amazing time already so far. If that will be extended, that's the case. If not, then I will go somewhere else," he told reporters at Selhurst Park. Two seasons ago, in a similar situation, he stayed calm and signed a two-year deal in April 2025. Whenever he does leave, the report argues, he will go down as arguably Liverpool's greatest centre-half alongside Alan Hansen, who presented him with the Premier League trophy after the 2024-25 season at Van Dijk's request. The two posed for a photo after a win over Brighton in October.
Aside from a poor error against Villarreal in the Champions League, Van Dijk has shown this season that his standards have not collapsed. His partnership with summer signing Jeremy Jacquet is developing, and he has played every Premier League minute since the start of last season. Per 90 minutes this season he averages 60.7 successful passes, wins possession 3.5 times, and makes 7.1 clearances, with a 75% success rate in duels and 79% in the air. In 2018-19, his first full season, those figures included 72.4 successful passes and 5.1 possessions won, with slightly different duel numbers. He is not the same force he was under Jürgen Klopp, the report says, but he remains an elite centre-half and a leader, including in suggesting to Andoni Iraola that the squad visit the Anfield museum.
Liverpool will want to avoid a repeat of the Mohamed Salah situation. After a stellar 2024-25, Salah's numbers fell sharply in 2025-26. The club has young centre-backs, including Jacquet, Giovanni Leoni, Ifeanyi Ndukwe, and Mor Talla Ndiaye, but letting Van Dijk leave would leave a large gap. He did not take a pay cut in his last deal, according to the report, another factor in the talks ahead.
The verified story is an unresolved contract, a still-high level of performance, and a club keen not to fumble a senior star's exit again. It is not an announcement that Van Dijk is leaving, or that a new deal is done. How that conversation ends will shape Liverpool's defence next season as much as any summer signing, because replacing a captain who still plays every minute is harder than admiring his past in a hospitality lounge photograph.