Liverpool fans have been adjusting to the idea that Trent Alexander-Arnold will be leaving at the end of the season. But with nothing yet confirmed, Mohamed Salah has sparked fresh hope over the full-back's contract.

The prevailing mood in recent weeks has been that two out of three ain't bad. Salah and Virgil van Dijk have both committed to extensions at Anfield, and Liverpool always knew it was in for a struggle as soon as Alexander-Arnold proved receptive to Real Madrid's overtures.

However, the line Alexander-Arnold has stuck to all season is that he will not discuss his contract in public, a stance he reiterated as recently as last weekend, following his winning goal against Leicester. The upshot is that his future beyond the end of the campaign remains, for now, speculation.

Admittedly, that post-Leicester interview sounded very much like a player who knows he is on his way out, as expected. Some fans latched onto his reference to "special moments", the same phrase Van Dijk used during his contract announcement, but Alexander-Arnold sidestepped the big questions like a career politician.

Another thing that seemed telling was the absence of Salah's now-customary selfie with the goal-scorer. It has become a hallmark of Liverpool's run-in, but a snap with Alexander-Arnold was conspicuous by its absence.

Until now. Three days overdue, Salah has posted a captionless photo alongside Alexander-Arnold at the AXA Training Centre, and fans have naturally been pondering what it might mean.

Mohamed Salah posted a selfie with Trent Alexander-Arnold to Instagram.
Mohamed Salah posted a selfie with Trent Alexander-Arnold to Instagram.

Of course, there's the boring explanation that they simply did not get round to it on matchday. Perhaps one of them was called for random drug testing, or maybe media duties took up too much time. But then why wait until Wednesday? Surely you either post it at the first practical opportunity, or just let this one slide?

Or at least that's what some Liverpool fans are theorizing. The timing of the photo is being taken as a sign that there has been some kind of dramatic late breakthrough in talks with Alexander-Arnold. In fairness, there would be plenty of reasons for Alexander-Arnold to U-turn. For one thing, Real Madrid exited the Champions League in limp fashion to the side 13 points behind Liverpool.

After that, Kylian Mbappe found himself whistled at the Bernabeu. Alexander-Arnold would be risking a lot by leaving the place where he is adored. And any decision to leave your boyhood club is always prone to changes of heart. Just ask Martin Zubimendi, or Steven Gerrard for that matter.

Having said all that, the photo is just a photo. Fans will retain the tiniest seed of hope until it's all official, but it's sadly unlikely that Salah knows something that we don't.