Alexis Mac Allister's Liverpool Future: Uncertainty Ahead
Alexis Mac Allister’s Liverpool future has slipped into that awkward grey zone the modern game knows so well: no crisis, no clarity, just questions.
While he prepares with Argentina for a World Cup semi-final against England in 2026, talk around Anfield has turned to contracts and commitment. For now, Mac Allister is not at the table.
BBC Sport report that the 27-year-old is not in negotiations with Liverpool over a new deal, despite having two years left on the contract he signed when he arrived from Brighton & Hove Albion in the summer of 2023 for £35m. There are no talks with other clubs either. No secret summit. No active transfer.
Just a pause.
Key man, uncertain plan
Mac Allister was central to Liverpool’s title-winning campaign under Arne Slot, knitting midfield and attack, dictating tempo, and carrying the weight of big moments in a side that rediscovered its edge. Then came the dip. Last season his form tailed off, and with it the sense of inevitability that a new long-term deal would be rushed through.
Now Andoni Iraola is in the building, and the landscape has shifted again.
Liverpool still expect Mac Allister to stay next season and play under their new head coach. There is no indication from the club or player that a parting of ways is imminent. Yet the lack of movement on a contract that runs to 2028 jars when set against what is happening around him.
Dominik Szoboszlai, whose deal also expires in 2028, is already in talks over improved terms. Ryan Gravenberch signed a new contract in May. The message is clear: some pieces of the midfield rebuild are being locked in early.
Mac Allister is not one of them. Not yet.
Madrid whispers, Anfield reality
His name has floated around Real Madrid for months, a familiar soundtrack for any high-performing midfielder in Europe. The links have been regular, the progress non-existent. No bids, no formal approach, no negotiations. Just admiration from afar.
Liverpool’s stance remains steady. There is no active sale process, and the player is not working on an exit. The intrigue lies not in what is happening, but in what is not.
At a club that has moved decisively to protect value in recent years, allowing a key midfielder to drift towards the final two years of his deal without fresh talks raises eyebrows. Especially when others in his position group are being tied down.
A midfield in flux
Curtis Jones adds another layer to the puzzle. Inter Milan have pushed hard, seeing multiple bids knocked back, including a third offer that Liverpool have again rejected. His future, like Mac Allister’s, hangs in the balance, but for different reasons.
Jones is being courted. Mac Allister is being watched.
Liverpool may simply want to see how the Argentine looks in Iraola’s system before committing to a new long-term package. Does he anchor the midfield? Does he play higher, closer to the forwards? Does he remain the heartbeat of the side, or become one of several rotating options?
The club’s hierarchy appears content to let those questions breathe for a season.
For now, Mac Allister’s focus is on Argentina and a World Cup semi-final, not on signatures and clauses. When he returns to Merseyside, the picture will sharpen. Either Liverpool move to secure a player who has already proved he can be a title-winning fulcrum, or they continue to walk the tightrope between value, performance and long-term planning.
In a summer of quick decisions and fast deals across Europe, Liverpool’s choice with Mac Allister is the one they seem determined to slow down.
