peaking on Friday, Arne Slot explained that Liverpool remain locked in talks with Ibrahima Konate’s representatives over a new contract at Anfield.
The France international sees his terms expire at the end of the season and, as things stand, he is set to become the latest in a long line of high-profile players in recent years whose deals have ran out before leaving.
James Milner, Naby Keita, Roberto Firmino, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Gini Wijnaldum are just four who have left as free agents since 2021 and Trent Alexander-Arnold would have joined that list had Real Madrid not paid a £10m premium to get the England international in early for June’s Club World Cup in the United States.
Slot revealed: “We are in talks with him so that tells you what we want. It’s clear we would like him to stay but negotiations are ongoing so let’s see where that ends. We wouldn’t be in negotiations if we didn’t want him to stay.”
But with the centre-back reportedly seeking a significant hike on the agreement he signed when he was a young player joining from RB Leipzig in the summer of 2021, the ECHO’s dedicated Liverpool writers have their say on whether a new deal for Konate is a no-brainer or not.
Paul Gorst
It’s been a season blighted by inconsistency for Ibrahima Konate but the defender is not alone in that regard at Liverpool.
As Slot alluded to after the 1-0 win over Sunderland, where Konate excelled to quieten Brian Brobbey, the defender has often been superb for 89 minutes only for a momentary lapse in to let him down and the idea that he was too often “at the scene of the crime” – to use the head coach’s phrasing at Leeds in December – has been prevalent.
However, Konate, who was allowed a three-game leave of absence after the death of his father last month in Paris, has looked rejuvenated since his return to action.
It speaks to his willingness to play for the team too that he asked to come back to help out a defensive crisis recently. He did similar in January of 2025 when he made sure he returned from injury quicker than expected after a hamstring issue for Joe Gomez left the centre-back options light.
Konate, in fact, even revealed he was playing through the pain barrier with the aid of pain-killing injections to make himself available for the club around that time.
And he has has been virtually flawless since his comeback, shining in the 4-1 win over Newcastle before that performance at the Stadium of Light last week. Throw in another good display against Brighton on Saturday night in the FA Cup and the Paris-born player looks like he is enjoying his football once more.
At the age of 26, Konate should be entering his prime as a France international centre-back who will represent one of the favourites for the World Cup this summer. It’s no wonder he is likely being courted by some big clubs.
Perhaps the sticking point here is the jump in the bottom line that is being sought by Konate? He has developed a lot as a player and a character in the dressing room during his five years at the club, but remains on the same terms agreed when he was on the cusp of turning 22.
In that regard, it makes sense that Anfield chiefs are being financially prudent at a time when their wage bill is delicately poised as one of the biggest in both English and world football. But for Liverpool, it’s likely worth asking how much Konate would be worth in today’s market?
It surely makes financial sense to tie him down if he wishes to stay on Merseyside. Replacing him would cost a fortune and while the £60m Jeremy Jacquet is undoubtedly one for the future, there is no substitute for experience and class at the heart of the defence.
Ian Doyle
First the good news. If we are to take their word at face value, then Real Madrid are not interested in signing Ibrahima Konate on a free transfer in the summer.
The bad news, though, is that everyone else will surely want to attempt to lure the centre-back should he fail to negotiate a new contract at Anfield.
It’s not often a player who is a Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup winner while also having featured in the Champions League and World Cup finals becomes available on a free transfer while still to reach the expected prime years of their career.
Indeed, the fact is if Konate was about to become available, Liverpool would very much be in the conversation about snapping him up as a free agent. It would, in many respects, be a trademark Fenway Sports Group signing.
It is therefore imperative Liverpool agree a new contract with the defender. Yes, he wasn’t in great form for too much of the first half of the season. But he has lately reminded everyone of his defensive prowess when at the top of his game. Konate will be key for Arne Slot between now and the remainder of the season.
Jeremy Jacquet may be arriving in the summer in a £60million deal but, at 20 years of age, he’s younger than Konate was when the Frenchman signed up at Anfield in 2021.
And it’s easy to forget Konate made only 11 Premier League appearances in his debut season as he adjusted to life in England, with the vast majority of his outings coming in the cup competitions and Champions League.
Liverpool, then, need to ensure Konate sticks around for the foreseeable future. It won’t be a question of throwing a massive salary at the defender but more rewarding him at a deserved rate.
Plus, with Virgil van Dijk now approaching 35, it could be that Konate emerges as the natural successor to the Dutchman. He can’t do that if he’s not at Liverpool, though.
