Liverpool faces up to Ibrahima Konate reality with Real Madrid ready to pounce
Below is a summary of the full article. Click here for the full version or go back to LFC Live.net.
Liverpool faces a decisive few months with Ibrahima Konate, with reports in Spain suggesting that the club may already be resigned to him leaving for Real Madrid.
The defender’s future has been a source of concern for some time at Anfield now, with his contract set to expire at the end of the current season, and no sign as of yet that a new deal is in the offing.
Speculation has been rife that Konate could follow Trent Alexander-Arnold in making the move to Madrid at the end of his contract, although there have been conflicting reports on what his priority actually is.
Read More.
There have been suggestions that Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes has been speaking to Konate’s camp during the international break in order to try and push through a new contract, although reports in Spain are now claiming that the 26-year-old has already made his mind up, and is edging toward the exit door at Anfield.
According to Marca, the Reds are expecting Konate’s departure, with the defender having rejected all of the club’s attempts to tie him down to a new deal, and have already started to strengthen at the back in anticipation of his exit, as has been seen in the signing of Giovanni Leoni and the pursuit of Marc Guehi.
Ibrahima Konate's contract at Liverpool expires next summer
Konate now faces a crucial few months in securing his move to Madrid, with the French international said to be calm as he awaits the Spanish club’s advances.
He has addressed the rumors linking him with a move to the Bernabeu this week, having joked that Kylian Mbappe has been pressuring him into the transfer, while also denying that he has already started to learn Spanish.
For Real’s part, the club is said to be confident that there is no chance of Konate going back on the move and signing a new deal with his current club, just like Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies did.
In fact, we’re getting a sense of deja vu after the Alexander-Arnold saga last season.
Unless Konate comes out and says he wants a move to Madrid though, it’s an almost impossible situation for the Reds, although it does seem as though they’re aware they need to strengthen in defense, whether he stays or goes.
Right now, it feels as though he will be going
If Liverpool was planning on going back in for Guehi in January, you would be tempted to say it should look at getting any sort of money in for Konate in the New Year.
It looks as though the Reds will wait to get the Crystal Palace captain on a free next summer though, meaning the writing might be on the wall for another player to move to Real for nothing.