A real leader in the truest sense, and a colossus at the back for the Reds, the club would be neglecting their duties if they weren't at least considering the possibility of needing to replace him in the near future.
Van Dijk to leave at season's end?
By the start of the 2027/28 campaign, the Dutchman will be 36 years of age, and though many players now play well beyond their mid-thirties, time can already be seen to be catching up with the centre-back, who has certainly lost a yard of pace in the last 12-18 months.
Given that his contract also runs out in June 2027, there's every reason to believe that it might be considered the best time to make a clean break and thank Van Dijk for his brilliant service before allowing him to move on.
It also begs the question as to whether taking Ronald Araujo on loan from Barcelona was to see how he performed in the Premier League for a season before, potentially, making his move permanent.
The Uruguayan was once considered untouchable at the Catalan giants and was their captain for good reason.
Red cards cost Barcelona
Great in the air and rapid across the ground, there was certainly a feeling that Araujo was the embodiment of the modern-day centre-back.
However, the high-profile mistakes then started to creep in.
Barcelona were well on top in a Champions League game against Paris Saint-Germain back in 2024, but Araujo's clumsy and unnecessary challenge on Bradley Barcola reduced his side to 10 men and ultimately changed the outcome of the tie.
Another late challenge, this time on Marc Cucurella in a UCL game against Chelsea last season, saw the same outcome and, once again, Barca weren't in the game after that dismissal.
Mental health break
It was that red card which led to the player making the brave admission that he needed help for depression and mental health problems, and to Barcelona's credit, they granted him an indefinite leave of absence.
Having brought the player back into the fold only when he felt he was ready, Araujo did, nonetheless, find it difficult to break back into the side in the second half of last season, hence the loan to the Reds.
Can he be considered the natural successor to Van Dijk, however?
Since the beginning of last season, and taking into account that he missed a few months for the reason detailed above, his numbers have been more than acceptable.
Great defensive numbers
Of the 36 tackles that he's made in total, 25 have been won, and his highest success rate is a brilliant 77.78%.
63 headed clearances, 95 clearances more generally, 14 interceptions, the winning back of possession on 79 separate occasions, and no errors leading to goals are also all indicators of a central defender of some standing.
Very rarely beaten in the air because of his size and natural athleticism, it's no wonder that Araujo has only lost just 36 of 120 aerial duels.
Though he has been caught out on more than one occasion by a ball over the top, the 27-year-old is also adept at winning his ground one-on-ones, and in the same time frame, the Uruguayan has lost just 73 of 201 attempted.
Cult hero
As might be expected from a player who has represented the Blaugranes, Araujo's passing accuracy isn't too shabby either.
From a league perspective last season, he ended with a high of 92% pass completion, whilst the lowest figure he's posted since the beginning of 25/26 is the 84.62% in Liverpool's current Champions League campaign.
He's still completed 33 of the 39 passes he's made in the competition for the Reds, so it's no wonder that Jamie Carragher, for one, is happy with the impact that Araujo has made.
"Liverpool have had an issue at right-back. That was the point in bringing him (Araujo) in. He wasn't just brought in at centre-back; it was to do a job at right-back," the former Reds stalwart was quoted as saying.
"He's almost become a cult hero already. The fans have absolutely fallen in love with him straight away.
"Sometimes you have players like that, you know, they've come, they've got a bit of a backstory, at Barcelona maybe they were happy to see him go, but the Liverpool supporters opened their arms and gave him a big cuddle, and he seems to be enjoying it."
Given that the Reds do hold an option to make Araujo's move permanent, as long as he remains injury-free and performs well for the rest of the 2026/27 campaign, there seems to be no valid reason as to why he wouldn't become a fixture at Anfield for the next few years.