Ibrahima Konate’s Liverpool future has been a big talking point of late, and Reds supporters may not feel too confident after some new comments from him.
The Frenchman was excellent in the 1-0 win at home to Arsenal before the international break, following a disappointing opening couple of performances from him this season.
Konate has grown into such a key player for Liverpool, partnering Virgil van Dijk impressively, but he is out of contract at Anfield next summer and has been linked with a move to Real Madrid.
During international duty with France, TF1 [via This Is Anfield] asked Konate: “The Spanish press is sending you to Real Madrid next season. Is Kylian Mbappe putting a bit of pressure on you to come?”
To that question, Konate jokingly said, “he calls me every two hours!” before adding, “no, no, no.”
Should we be worried about Konate’s comments?
It is clearly worth stressing that Konate’s remarks were said in jest, but the continued links to Madrid are still far from ideal, with a move to the Santiago Bernabeu something that could be on the 26-year-old’s mind.
The fact that he hasn’t yet committed his future to Liverpool is a concern, with another Trent Alexander-Arnold situation having the potential to emerge heading into 2026.
Granted, Konate isn’t an irreplaceable figure for the Reds, but the job he has done is an impressive one, with Van Dijk speaking of his appreciation for him last season, saying:
“I think we need everyone to be at their best. He is a fantastic player who still can be better. As you saw, he is important with the goal, he is defensively solid, a bit unlucky with the goal we conceded, but obviously the qualities he has are outstanding in my opinion. He is learning, growing, getting better and looking after himself much better in order to be ready every three days as that’s what asked.”
Hopefully, Konate signs an extension with Liverpool sooner rather than later, but having players like Kylian Mbappe potentially trying to persuade him to join Madrid next year is not something that Arne Slot will want.
