Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk forced to pay out $33M after Liverpool contract decisions

Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk were both rewarded with new contracts by Liverpool last year, but the pair have seen a big chunk of their earnings disappear

Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk have lost a big chunk of their earnings after signing new contracts at Liverpool(Image: Getty Images)

Virgil van Dijk has seen a substantial portion of his earnings disappear in tax since putting pen to paper on his new Liverpool contract. The club captain brought an end to months of uncertainty last April by signing a fresh two-year agreement with the Reds.

The extension mirrors his previous arrangement, meaning he continues to pocket around £350,000 ($477,000) per week, totalling £40 million ($55M). However, Van Dijk doesn't see a large slice of his salary, having handed over £9.7M ($13.2M) in tax during the past 12 months, according to the Sunday Times Tax List.

This places him among the UK's highest taxpayers overall, not just within football. The football rankings are led by Manchester City's Erling Haaland, who has stumped up a staggering £17M ($23.2M) in tax over the past year.

Second is Van Dijk's team-mate, Mohamed Salah, on £14.5M ($19.7M).

Manchester United's Brazilian midfielder Casemiro (£10.9M/$14.8M) sits third on the UK footballers' list ahead of his Old Trafford exit at the end of the campaign, reports the Liverpool Echo.

Former Reds winger Raheem Sterling, who last week terminated his Chelsea contract by mutual consent, contributed £9.8M ($13.3M) in tax, £100,000 more than Van Dijk.

Mohamed Salah is one of the UK's biggest taxpayers(Image: Getty Images)

Portuguese pair Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva, representing Manchester United and Manchester City respectively, were level on £9M ($12.3M). Haaland and Salah secured places in the overall top 100 taxpayers in the Sunday Times list, with Haaland ranked 72nd and Salah 81st.

Given his age, Liverpool is planning for life after Van Dijk by securing the signature of 20-year-old defender Jeremy Jacquet. The France under-21s international, who had also attracted interest from Chelsea, will arrive at Anfield in the summer following an agreement worth an initial £55M ($75M), potentially rising by £5M ($6.8M) in add-ons, to bring him from Rennes, where he will see out the current campaign.

With Van Dijk set to turn 35 in the summer, the club are putting the building blocks in place for a refreshed defensive line-up in the years ahead.

Arne Slot said: "It's 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 into their careers.

"But always players that are young and can improve us in the short term, but also definitely in the long term.

"We've signed a lot of them recently and, like I've said many times, the mid to long-term future of this club, and even the short-term future, is in a very, very good place."