Arne Slot makes admission on Virgil van Dijk's future ahead of seismic Liverpool and Man City clash

Van Dijk, who celebrates his 35th birthday in July, remains under contract until 2027 and has featured in 34 matches this campaign.

However, the Dutch manager made clear that Liverpool are actively considering their long-term defensive options despite the veteran's continued excellent form.

Slot was effusive in his praise for the young Frenchman, describing him as "a very big talent and maybe even more than talent but we speak about talent because of his age."

The Liverpool boss highlighted that the club faced competition for Jacquet's signature, calling it "a big compliment to the people working really hard to sign players."

He positioned the acquisition as emblematic of Liverpool's broader recruitment philosophy.

"It is another example of the model we're using at this club - young, very talented players sometimes at the start of their careers or sometimes already a little bit a few years into their career but always players that are young and can improve us in the short term but also definitely in the long term," Slot explained.

The Dutchman was adamant that the deadline day move was not a reactive decision, insisting that "everything done over here is never from panic, it's always long term idea and or something that has been thought about for a long time."

The manager acknowledged the reality of Van Dijk's situation while praising his remarkable durability. "Of course, we are aware of the fact that Virgil won't play for 10 years but he has one-and-a-half years [of] contract left, so he will be with us for that time, maybe longer even longer if he keeps staying fit as fit as he is now."

Slot added pointedly: "This club is not stupid.

"We do know somewhere in the upcoming years, there is life for this club after Virgil."

Liverpool managed to beat Chelsea to Jacquet's signature, with the Blues having appeared favourites to land the defender before the Reds made their successful move.

The French youngster is not the only centre-back Liverpool have secured, with the club also completing deals for 19-year-old Noah Adekoya, 18-year-old Mor Talla Ndiaye and 17-year-old Ifeanyi Ndukwe.

Attention now turns to Sunday's Premier League clash against Manchester City at Anfield, though Slot faces defensive concerns for the fixture.

Giovanni Leoni, Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong will all be unavailable, while the manager confirmed that Joe Gomez is not expected to be fit enough to complete the full 90 minutes.

City have already beaten Liverpool this season.

They won 3-0 at the Etihad in November courtesy of goals from Erling Haaland, Nico Gonzalez and Jeremy Doku.