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Liverpool's transfer target, Marc Guehi, has declared that he is not preoccupied with his future, despite the swirling rumours about where it might lie.
The defender has been linked with a move to top-tier European clubs such as Barcelona and Real Madrid in recent reports. The central defender was on the brink of a last-minute summer switch to Liverpool, but Crystal Palace halted the deal after failing to secure a suitable replacement.
Despite this, Guehi has remained a key player for the Eagles, even donning the captain's armband. His contract at Selhurst Park expires at the end of the season, and it's unlikely he'll pen a new one, making him available on a free transfer while speculation about his next club continues to mount.
Liverpool remains a potential destination, but recent reports suggest they may be trailing behind Bayern Munich, Barcelona, and Real Madrid in the chase.
It's also reported that Palace are bracing themselves for Guehi's exit, either in the January window or come summer.
Currently on international duty with England, Guehi could make appearances in both the friendly against Wales this Thursday night and next Tuesday's World Cup Qualifier in Latvia.
When questioned about the significance of sorting out his personal future ahead of these matches, Guehi responded, "For me, it doesn't matter," adding, "As long as I'm playing well for Palace, there is an opportunity for me to be here.
"Whether it's sorted or not, it doesn't matter for me. Personally, I don't know if I can think that far ahead. I like to just take it step by step, and that is just focusing on the games that I have at Palace and any upcoming opportunities I have here."
Liverpool are expected to monitor Guehi during the international break, though their January transfer window strategy remains unclear.
Arne Slot could have worries regarding his central defensive options, with summer acquisition Giovanni Leoni sidelined long-term due to a severe knee problem. "He is not in a good place, of course, because he tore his ACL and it means he will be out for a year," Slot said.
"Being so young and coming to a new country and playing so well in your first game... it's very hard to take the positive side.
"There's never a positive side - but you always try to look at a positive side and that is that he is still so young, so he has so many years still to go after he recovers from a terrible injury like that."
Leoni can lean on the support of fellow defensive cohort Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez, who both suffered similar injuries. "I think that last thing definitely helps and we have some examples of that with Virgil [van Dijk] and Joe [Gomez], and there are a lot of examples all around the world," said the head coach.
"That's why I said the positive thing is that he is still 18, so he still has a lot of time to go. If you get an injury like that when you are close to your retirement it makes it much more difficult maybe. But in both situations it's far from ideal.
"I think the main and most important thing is the surgeons that are going to do the surgery, then second of all the ones that do the recovery, the rehab, with him.
"But then it's always nice if you can do this in a surrounding with players who have lived through this as well, they can give you the right energy maybe in certain moments.
"And I think our players already showed in the last two days a lot of compassion towards him and they will not stop doing that in the upcoming year."
Questions also surround Ibrahima Konate's availability. It has emerged that the defender is not presently participating in France training sessions after hobbling off shortly following the interval in last weekend's loss to Chelsea.
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