Ibrahima Konate’s Liverpool future has been under question for as long as many can remember.
Last term, Liverpool were in a similar situation with Trent Alexander-Arnold, with the Englishman eventually leaving to join Los Blancos.
The Reds’ fans were understandably hurt by this, and with Konate now in the final year of his deal at Anfield, it feels like Arne Slot has found himself in the same situation again.
It’s clear that Real Madrid want to sign a new centre-back this term and, now that William Saliba has extended his stay at Arsenal, Xabi Alonso has had that option taken off the table.
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This has then had a knock-on effect on Konate as he’s now moved up their list of potential transfer targets this summer.
Ibrahima Konate has gone ‘back into focus’ for Real Madrid this summer
Although Real Madrid already have a fair few centre-back options among their ranks, the likes of David Alaba have been way too injury-prone over the last few years to be considered a reliable player.
This has resulted in the La Liga outfit looking towards their academy for fresh talent as well as exploring the free agent market, with Konate and Marc Guehi high on their list.
However, according to ESPN, not all within Real Madrid are fully convinced that Konate should be the player they pursue.
The report starts out by saying that the defender has now come ‘back into focus’ at the Bernabeu, but any potential move will not be ‘simple.’
There is now a ‘debate’ among the Madrid ranks about whether Konate is a suitable player for them to sign. Some believe that he’s a ‘fantastic market opportunity’, but others aren’t ‘unanimously’ sold on him.
Despite this, Konate’s name has ‘climbed the list’ with a potential move for Saliba now impossible.
Liverpool must try and sign Marc Guehi as soon as possible
Talks of Konate extending his Liverpool stay have been ongoing for months now.
Every time the question is brought up, cryptic answers are given, with it feeling more and more likely that the Frenchman is going to exit this summer.
The former RB Leipzig man is one of Liverpool’s best players on his day, and without him among their ranks, the Reds could end up struggling.
However, if they manage to bring in Guehi as his replacement, the blow of losing the Frenchman would hurt much less.
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Of course, Slot tried to sign the Crystal Palace captain in the summer, but in the end, a move didn’t work out.
At the moment, it’s anyone’s guess what could happen, but for now, the Reds must start planning ahead, just in case Konate actually does end up leaving.