Real-linked Reds star ‘locked in contract talks’ amid fears

Liverpool are reportedly locked in contract talks with Ibrahima Konate and are confident of keeping him at the club despite Real Madrid having shown interest in him.

The Reds endured a torrid weekend of football, with their 2-1 loss against Chelsea seeing them drop to second place in the Premier League behind Arsenal.

Centre-back Ibrahima Konate came in for criticism for his performance against the Blues, and some observers have argued that the Frenchmen could be distracted by the ongoing rumours about Real Madrid’s interest in him.

The 26-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season, and he could make the same move as Trent Alexander-Arnold at the end of 2025-26.

However, Football Insider report that Liverpool are hopeful of keeping him tied to the club beyond this campaign, adding that their desire to extend his contract is part of a strategy to prevent star players leaving the club.

Why has Ibrahima Konate been so poor in the Premier League?

Pundits such as Jamie Carragher have blasted the form of Konate at the start of the season, with the defender only performing well against Arsenal and Burnley so far.

One of the reasons for his struggles has been the absence of right-back Alexander-Arnold, who was able to take the bulk of buildup responsibility on the right side of defence.

Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong are substantially worse passers of the ball than the Englishman, and their deficiencies have exposed some of Konate’s flaws in possession.

The Frenchman is also normally an excellent duellist, but he has too often struggled, unlike his partner Virgil van Dijk.

What players could Liverpool lose over the next seasons?

Liverpool fans thought they had escaped the speculation regarding the future of key players following the extensions of Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah at the end of the previous campaign, but the club will face difficult decisions in the coming seasons.

Van Dijk and Salah are contracted to the Reds until 2027, a summer in which Alisson Becker’s deal will also expire, and it could be risky allowing all three to head into the final year of their contracts.

Andrew Robertson, Konate, Joe Gomez, Curtis Jones and Kostas Tsimikas’s deals will all expire by 2027, and losing so many players in such a short period could cause disruption.

Considering Liverpool have looked disjointed this season after a summer of turbulence, boss Arne Slot will be keen to avoid similar amounts of turnover in the coming transfer windows.

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