Up until now, the ongoing contract sagas at Anfield haven’t been an issue for Liverpool on the pitch - or at least, Arne Slot insists they haven’t.

And to be fair, before Sunday’s game against Manchester United, there was every reason to believe the Liverpool boss. After all, the Reds were flying high on every front, and looking ahead to what could be an unforgettable 2025 if all goes to plan.

The New Year though didn’t get off to the start fans would have hoped for. There’s still no sign of new deals for Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah or Trent Alexander-Arnold, and to make matters worse, Real Madrid has now stepped up its efforts to try and sign the latter before his current contract expires.

READ MORE: Virgil van Dijk responds to Trent Alexander-Arnold claim and Man Utd 'disrespect'

READ MORE: Jamie Carragher shares theory as he addresses Mo Salah exchange live on Sky Sports

• Mohamed Salah sends crystal clear triple contract message to Liverpool after Man Utd game

• Arne Slot has already hinted that one Liverpool player won't start against Spurs

No matter though, as Slot continued to insist that the Spanish giant’s advances wouldn’t affect his vice-captain ahead of facing Liverpool’s biggest domestic rival.

"If it would destabilize players at Liverpool if other people talk about them, then we would really have a problem," Slot said during his pre-match press conference. "It is one of the biggest clubs in the world so it happens so many times for our players! There were some talks about our players in the last six months and I don't think that destabilized them at all.”

Just over 24 hours after that disappointing draw with United though, fans are starting to wonder whether Slot’s faith may have been misguided. While Van Dijk and Salah continued to go about their business, Alexander-Arnold had a night to forget.

The 26-year-old was a noticeable weak link throughout, with United continually finding ways of getting in behind down his flank, while he was at fault in both of the visitors’ goals which ultimately cost Liverpool the three points, and an eight-point lead at the top of the Premier League.

His performance has not gone down well with some sections of supporters. Already on something of a knife-edge over his refusal to comment publicly about his contract negotiations, unlike his teammates, Alexander-Arnold’s performance did nothing to convince anyone that his head hasn’t been turned.

Slot continued to defend his right-back after the game, and perhaps it was just an off-day for Alexander-Arnold. The Liverpool boss’ opposite number perhaps inadvertently summed things up best as he tore into his own players for failing to turn up before their trip to Anfield.

"That should be a big issue for our players that even one person thinks you have the ability but not the character, we have to fight that and change that,” Ruben Amorim said post-match.

And therein lies the problem now with Alexander-Arnold. The Real interest might not be playing on his mind, but there’s no way you can convince everyone of that.

His performances are no doubt going to come under the microscope now, and if he turns in another stinker like he did on Sunday, fans are going to start drawing their own conclusions, if they haven’t already.

Slot has faced numerous questions over his soon-to-be out-of-contract trio throughout the season, and his response has always been the same. As long they keep performing, there’s no issue.

This latest performance then has to be a worry for the Liverpool boss. If Alexander-Arnold is back to his best in his next outing, then all of this fallout will be forgotten about. If he continues to underperform though, Slot needs to take action, especially now that Conor Bradley is back fit.