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New season, new head coach, new players – it has been a summer of transformation at Liverpool but, happily, some things remain the same. Hungarian talisman Dominik Szoboszlai, the Reds’ standout performer in an underwhelming 2025/26 season, is going nowhere after signing a new contract that will keep him at Anfield until 2031. It was pretty much the club’s first piece of business under Andoni Iraola – and for good reason.

The coming campaign means fresh hope and possibilities for Liverpool, who barely squeezed back into the Champions League after finishing fifth in England under Arne Slot. Key to their prospects at home and abroad will be their energetic No8, named by fans as the Reds’ player of the season last term. Szoboszlai has already praised Iraola for restoring “intensity” to their play, and the admiration is mutual, with the former Bournemouth boss citing the midfielder’s contract extension as possibly the “greatest news since I arrived”.

It’s not hard to see why as the Basque tactician launches a new era. Rewind to January and Szoboszlai stands over a free- kick in first-half stoppage time at the Stade Vélodrome, with Liverpool and Marseille locked at 0-0 in the Champions League. The French hosts may be expecting a repeat of the howitzer he scored against Arsenal five months previously but, noticing that OM have neglected to append a draft excluder to their wall, Szoboszlai shoots – or rather putts – the ball under the wall and low into the corner. “I did my homework,” he said.

As a schoolboy, Szoboszlai received permission from his father to have a quote attributed to Steven Gerrard tattooed on his arm. Nine years later, Gerrard said of his heir apparent: “I hope he stays around for a long time because I think there’s a potential captain in there.” With that new contract signed, Liverpool fans – and Gerrard – have much to look forward to.