Liverpool supporters were left delighted and relieved on Friday as Dominik Szoboszlai ended any uncertainty over his future by signing a new five-year contract.
There had been a feeling that Szoboszlai may be eyeing the chance to follow in the footsteps of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Ibrahima Konate by running down his contract and leaving for Real Madrid.
That will now not be happening any time soon, with the Hungarian committed to Liverpool until 2031. However, judging by how the Reds have tended to handle contracts in recent times, Szoboszlai will not be staying at Anfield beyond his new end date.
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Szoboszlai unlikely to stay at Liverpool beyond 2031
Liverpool have usually followed a fairly set path with players and their contracts over the past decade or so.
Do well after joining the Reds, and you can expect a new deal two or three years later, which will often take you to or approaching your 30th birthday.
Liverpool will then make a decision over another extension, which will often result in the player either being sold early or exiting on a free transfer.
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Gini Wijnaldum is a good example of this, while it is fair to say that, at 27, Liverpool were unwilling to offer Konate fresh terms knowing a new contract would take him well beyond 30.
It is probably the reason the Reds have been cool on Mac Allister’s contract as well, with the Argentine currently tied up until six months before he turns 30.
For Szoboszlai, he will hit the magic number eight months before his deal expires, and that is fairly perfect timing from Liverpool.
There are exceptions here, of course, but the Reds have only tended to break policy in special cases, such as Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah and Jordan Henderson, or for slightly lesser paid players like James Milner.
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Obviously, Szoboszlai could make himself an exception as well, and if the 25-year-old has become Liverpool captain by then, for example, he could sign another new contract in the next two or three years.
But, despite popular belief that he is next in line to that particular throne, Szoboszlai still has a lot to prove to show that he can be the player for Liverpool, making it more likely that he departs either one year before his deal finishes in 2030, or exits on a free transfer one year later.
Szoboszlai can still become a legend at Liverpool
Despite the probability of his time at Liverpool not being extended beyond this latest agreement, that still leaves plenty of time for Szoboszlai to really make his mark at Anfield.
By 2031, the No. 8 will have been a Liverpool player for eight years, more than enough time to write his name into the history books.
Roberto Firmino and Milner lasted eight years with the Reds, while Mohamed Salah and Andy Robertson played for only one more.
If Szoboszlai can add his name alongside those legends over the course of the next five years, before looking ahead for a new chapter, nobody will begrudge him going wherever and whenever he wants.
Like any football player, his time with Liverpool will not last forever, and though the end may have already been telegraphed ahead, there is still so much for him to achieve in the meantime.
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