Real Madrid have struck a ‘verbal agreement’ to sign a centre-back via free agency in 2026 in a colossal development for Liverpool and their own attempts to forge a new deal with Ibrahima Konate, according to a report.
It’s no secret Konate, 26, is on Real Madrid’s radar. The France international is out of contract at Anfield in the summer and while the Reds have put extensions on the table, Konate is yet to commit.
The feeling on Merseyside for a long time is Konate is waiting for Real Madrid, just as Trent Alexander-Arnold did one year ago.
After Real Madrid abandoned long-term plans to sign William Saliba after the Arsenal ace penned fresh terms in north London, Konate was widely viewed as Madrid’s No 1 target at centre-back.
And while that was true for a while, the latest from FootMercato claims Konate has slid down Madrid’s wanted list.
Instead, Bayern Munich’s Dayot Upamecano – also out of contract next summer – is front and centre in their thoughts.
And per FootMercato journalist, Santi Aouna, Real Madrid have now struck a ‘verbal agreement’ with the 27-year-old.
The deal is not set in stone and obviously cannot be finalised until January 1, at which point Upamecano can sign a pre-contract agreement with Real Madrid.
Nevertheless, it is the surest sign yet it’ll be Upamecano and not Konate who joins Real Madrid via free agency next summer. As such, signing Konate is ‘no longer a priority’ for Xabi Alonso’s side, according to the report.
That won’t be music to the ears of Konate who it’s claimed ‘would like to join’ Real Madrid. But if the Spanish giant don’t put a contract on the table, he is out of luck.
It’s claimed Konate has other interest, most notably from PSG and Barcelona. But Real Madrid – the one club Konate apparently wanted above all others – seemingly dropping out of the race could also serve as a gigantic boost to Liverpool’s hopes of convincing the defender to stay.
Interestingly, it’s claimed Real Madrid officials were ‘impressed’ with Konate’s display when the Frenchman helped Liverpool keep a clean sheet against Los Blancos on Tuesday night.
However, it appears Real Madrid’s decision to move for Upamecano and not Konate was made before the events of Tuesday night.
Whether Konate’s unconvincing displays in the earlier part of the season are to blame was not made clear, but it would make sense if they factored into the equation.
Liverpool will sign new centre-back even if Konate stays
Even if Liverpool do tie Konate down to a new contract, the Reds still intend to sign a new centre-half next summer.
A renewed push to sign Marc Guehi, this time via free agency, will be made after their close call last summer. Upamecano is also a confirmed target at Liverpool but he now appears destined for the Bernabeu.
Of course, Bayern Munich losing Upamecano will strengthen their desire to snatch Guehi out of Liverpool’s clutches. Bayern have already held talks with Guehi’s representatives.
Virgil van Dijk remains a world class defender but aged 34, Liverpool must safeguard their future. As is the case almost every summer, there’ll be chances for Joe Gomez to leave for a club where he’ll finally start regularly.
Giovanni Leoni is highly regarded within Anfield but is young and suffered a season-ending ACL injury on his Reds debut.
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In other news, Liverpool are progressing on arguably the most important deal they’ll agree in 2026.
Elsewhere, Real Madrid’s embarrassing attempts to unsettle a Liverpool player before Tuesday’s Champions League tie not only backfired, but have been exposed by Fabrizio Romano.
Finally, TEAMtalk can confirm Liverpool are one of the clubs taking a close look at Juventus and Turkey ace, Kenan Yildiz.