Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk says he wants Andy Robertson to stay at the club as he remains a "very important" member of the squad. Earlier this week, Tottenham opened talks with Liverpool in an effort to sign the left-back, who is out of contract in the summer.

"He's my vice-captain," said Van Dijk. "Robbo is a very important member of our team and I want him to stay but whatever happens, let's see." Liverpool signed Robertson from Hull City for £8m in 2017 during Jurgen Klopp's reign and he has made 364 appearances for the Reds. The 31-year-old has won nine trophies during his time at the Anfield club, including two Premier League titles and the Champions League.

Robertson is no longer the first-choice left-back at Liverpool but is keen to play regularly again and is considering options that allow him to do that. The Scotland international came off the bench to replace Milos Kerkez at half-time in Saturday's defeat at Bournemouth but he has started just four times in the Premier League this season.

Pushed on whether he expected Robertson to be at Anfield for Liverpool's Champions League game against Qarabag on Wednesday, Van Dijk said: "That's not on me, is it?" The Liverpool skipper was then asked about his best memories of Robertson but insisted he would only "speak about that" if the move happened.

Meanwhile, Liverpool boss Arne Slot refused to discuss the prospect of allowing his vice-captain to leave when he was asked whether he felt Robertson would still be a Liverpool player by the end of January. "What do you think my answer is going to be? Have I ever said anything about transfers in front of these microphones," said Slot. "My answer is always the same and it's quite boring to always give the same answer - we don't talk about transfers in public."

In the aftermath of their defeat at Bournemouth, Arne Slot spoke about the tiredness of his players following their midweek win in Marseille. Joe Gomez went off injured in the first half, while left-back Kerkez was removed at half-time for Robertson and right-back Jeremie Frimpong made way just before the hour mark.

As Liverpool chased the game, they did so with a back four of two midfielders in Dominik Szoboszlai and Ryan Gravenberch, alongside Van Dijk and Robertson. This is a side that lacks serious depth. Yes, Robertson is considering his options before the World Cup this summer, but with Liverpool still in the Champions League and now well and truly in the thick of the race to qualify for the Champions League next season, it would be a baffling decision if they did allow one of their most experienced players to leave in January.

For Richard Hughes, the sporting director, the question is whether it is really worth losing one of the most important members in the dressing room for a small fee. There is a likelihood that Kostas Tsimikas will return from his loan spell at AS Roma if Robertson departed, but that would simply be papering over the cracks.

"I need all my players," said Slot. Perhaps bringing Robertson on at half-time on Saturday was the biggest indication of that. Robertson ultimately wants to play football regularly and the understanding is that any decision will be made with the best interests of both club and player.

There will be more midweek games to come with Liverpool still in Europe and the FA Cup, and with that more chances for rotation. The reality right now is that it is not in the best interests of Liverpool to allow Robertson to leave this month.