Liverpool are yet to sign Ibrahima Konate to a new contract amid growing interest from Spain, but the defender wants to sort out his future before the World Cup starts
Ibrahima Konate wants to decide on his future before the World Cup (Image: Getty Images)
Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate wants to decide on his future before the World Cup and looks increasingly likely to remain at Anfield.
The Frenchman’s future has been a hot topic throughout the season and he has been free to sign with overseas clubs since January. Konate’s home next season remains unclear for now, despite Liverpool’s desire to keep him.
Konate has been at Anfield since signing with manager Jurgen Klopp in 2021 and does not want the noise surrounding his future to continue into this summer’s World Cup. Les Bleus, one of the favorites to win the tournament, will begin the tournament against Senegal on June 16th.
L’Equipe report that despite genuine interest from Spain, the most likely conclusion to this saga is for the centre-half to choose to remain at Liverpool. Konate has become Virgil van Dijk’s most common partner at the heart of the team’s defence.
He added that the club and Konate were still in talks after the first offer was understood to be lower than the player’s wishes, and that “we have never been close to reaching an agreement.”
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Since the arrival of Arne Slott, Liverpool have been active in their desire to add another centre-half to their squad. Giovanni Leoni was signed for £26m last summer, but suffered an injury early in the season that ruled him out for the entire season. The Reds also beat Chelsea in the race to sign Jeremy Jaquet. He is expected to join in the summer at a cost of £55 million.
But Slott has been adamant that he wants to keep Konate, despite being open about his mistakes earlier this season. The Frenchman responded appropriately to the criticism, but the Liverpool manager believes his mistakes were overemphasized.
The Reds hope to persuade their centre-half to remain at Anfield (Image: PETER POWELL/AFP via Getty Images)
“The evaluation from him is as good as the evaluation from Virgil (van Dijk),” he previously said. “Ibou has been very good lately. He had a lot of good games at the beginning of the season, but that was part of the reason for the goals we conceded.”
“His overall performance was good, but I judged him differently because small mistakes quickly led to goals. But since I’ve been here, he’s formed a very good partnership with Virgil. Like Virgil, he’s always been fit, touch wood. These two are essential for us, not only because of their quality, but also because we don’t have options at the back.”
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