Yan Diomande humiliates Ibrahima Konate just hours after Liverpool makes approach
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Yan Diomande completely outran Ibrahima Konate to a loose ball inside the box in just the third minute of Ivory Coast's stunning 2-1 victory over FranceIbrahima Konate took on Yan Diomande during the international friendly football match between France and Ivory Coast(Image: Getty)Hours after reports emerged that Liverpool were racing to sign RB Leipzig winger Yan Diomande, the Ivorian provided a very public demonstration of exactly why the Reds want him — by leaving Ibrahima Konate, who's about to leave Anfield, trailing in his wake.The moment came early in Ivory Coast's 2-1 World Cup warmup victory over France in Nantes on Wednesday.In just the third minute, Diomande burst onto a loose ball, completely outrunning Konate to reach it in the box, exposing the center-back's lack of pace in the kind of scene that will have been studied carefully both in Merseyside and Madrid, where Konate is simultaneously being courted as a free agent.Nothing came of the chance itself, but the image of Diomande surging away from the defender Real Madrid is close to signing was not lost on observers.Ivory Coast ultimately produced a stunning result. France, missing several first-team regulars through rotation, led at halftime through Rayan Cherki's composed finish just before the break.Didier Deschamps made five substitutions for the second half, including replacing Kylian Mbappé with Crystal Palace's Jean-Philippe Mateta, but the changes disrupted France rather than improved them.Content cannot be displayed without consentGuela Doué, brother of France and Paris Saint-Germain winger Désiré Doué, equalized in the 53rd minute, latching onto a through ball and clipping past Mike Maignan.Then, with six minutes remaining, Manchester United forward Amad met a Doué cross first time to sweep into the far corner and complete the comeback.Liverpool is understood to be actively pursuing Diomande as their primary target to replace Mohamed Salah, aware of rival interest from Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City, and keen to move quickly.Konate looks set to join Real Madrid after leaving Liverpool(Image: Getty Images)Konate, meanwhile, is out of contract at the end of June after months of failed negotiations at Anfield.Perez declared publicly this week that "if I remain president of Real Madrid, one of the world's top defenders, Konate, will be playing for Real Madrid from next season onwards." The Spanish club's presidential election takes place on June 7.For Liverpool, losing Konate for nothing after also losing Trent Alexander-Arnold on a free transfer last summer represents another painful piece of transfer business.The hope is that Diomande's pace, directness, and dynamism can help offset what is being lost, and Wednesday's opening three minutes at least confirmed the 23-year-old has the ability to hurt defenders at the international level.
