Real Madrid Ibrahima Konate pursuit no laughing matter but 'ridiculous' Liverpool comment offers reprieve

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There was a surprising amount of candour from Arne Slot when he was asked about Liverpool's transfer interest in Marc Guehi at the AXA Training Centre on Friday.

The Reds boss was quizzed on the club's failure to land the Crystal Palace captain on transfer deadline day and the forthright response represented something of a break in tradition from Slot, who is usually so adept at being coy over such topics.

"Nah, I think it would be ridiculous if I’m going to deny we were close to signing him," Slot candidly admitted on Friday.



“That is so out in the open that that would be ridiculous.

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“These things happen in football, it happened to our players maybe in the past as well that they thought they were so close to signing somewhere else and then in the last moment, things change.

Like I have said many times, if we feel we can strengthen the team with a chance in the market, we never hesitated to do so and that’s what we tried to do."

It was no secret, of course, that Liverpool tried to get Guehi through the door before the 7pm transfer deadline on September 1, having agreed a £35m deal with Palace before the centre-back undertook his medical in the capital.

However, with Palace's replacement, Brighton's Igor Julio, making the surprise switch to West Ham United instead, the rug was pulled from the deal and Guehi was forced to stay put, with Eagles boss Oliver Glasner subsequently denying widespread reports that he had threatened to quit if his skipper was sold.

Slot, of course, did revert back to type when asked if Guehi's interest would extend to the January transfer window, adding: “Let’s see what the future brings for him and for us.

The thing I think most about is Burnley at the moment, I can assure you.”

Liverpool, as it stands, are unlikely to pursue another deal with Palace for Guehi and will instead look to bring the Three Lions international to Anfield as a free agent next summer and while the inability to get the deadline day deal over the line was eased by the sight of £125m Alexander Isak joining from Newcastle, that the defender remains at Selhurst Park offers somewhat of a reprieve for Ibrahima Konate.

Konate, like Guehi, is inside the final year of his own deal and has Real Madrid reportedly keen to snare him as a free agent next summer.

Such has been los Blancos' interest, in fact, that the France international was even moved to make a wisecrack about it during his time with his national side this week.

The Liverpool defender joked that Kylian Mbappe has been repeatedly calling him in an effort to get him to the Spanish capital on a free transfer next year.

As well as a pull-out fixtures guide to the group phase, we profile every other club in the competition.

Our writers cover Arne Slot’s side all season long, home, away and abroad, seven days a week, and this special second edition of Blood Red is full of their in-depth features, analysis and comment.

There's also an interview with Voice of Anfield George Sephton who looks back at his time at the club, we review the big tactical talking points of the season's opening games, and we preview the next month of action as the Champions combine their bid to defend their Premier League crown with the start of their mission for Champions League glory.

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The former RB Leipzig star was much improved against Arsenal before the break but breakdown of the move for Guehi means he now has very little competition for a first-team place most weeks at Anfield, with a clearly defined pecking order in the centre-back department under Slot.

Captain Virgil van Dijk will start most weeks alongside Konate when fit, with the versatile and long-serving Joe Gomez providing back-up alongside the untried teenager Giovanni Leoni.

Key to Konate enjoying a good campaign on Merseyside will be to avoid the settling in of complacency given Guehi is not on board to provide a real battle for a place alongside the peerless Van Dijk.

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While the 26-year-old continues with an unresolved future and a lack of real competition, save for a return to real prominence for Gomez, it could become easy to slip into the comfort zone at Anfield for a defender who arrived in the summer of 2021 from Leipzig.

The onus, then, is on him to ensure those accusations stay well away, starting with a continuation of the performance turned in against Arsenal.