Ibrahima Konate only has a year left on his current Liverpool deal.
The Anfield outfit have offered the Frenchman at least two contract extensions, with neither being agreeable for the centre-back.
Arne Slot has already gone through a free agent saga in his year with the club, as Trent Alexander-Arnold chose to make the switch to Real Madrid.
And now, it feels like the same thing could be happening again with Konate also holding out for a potential move to the La Liga giants.
Ibrahima Konate of Liveprool poses with the Premier League trophy at Anfield
Photo by Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images
However, some new information has come to light which will certainly be of interest to Liverpool fans.
Real Madrid could use Rodrygo as a ‘bargaining chip’ to sign Ibrahima Konate from Liverpool
Since the summer transfer window first opened, the future of Konate has been brought into question.
With no chance of a renewal in the near future, it feels like now would be the best time for Liverpool to get rid of him, especially if they want a fee for the Frenchman.
And now, as per a report from Spanish outlet Diario Sport, it seems like Real Madrid could be about to move things on a bit.
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The report outlines that now that Los Blancos have ‘set their eyes’ on Konate, they want to try and sign him this summer, rather than wait until the end of the 2025-26 campaign.
This comes following the ‘bad performances’ of players such as Antonio Rudiger over the last season or so.
Diario Sport also go on to say that now Liverpool are interested in signing Rodrygo, Xabi Alonso could use him as a ‘bargaining chip’ to get Konate to Spain.
Although some fans may not want the Brazilian, the fact that Carlo Ancelotti called him “special” outlines how much of a talent he actually is.
Rodrygo pictured during a Real Madrid Training Session
Photo by Antonio Villalba/Real Madrid via Getty Images
Liverpool must sell Ibrahima Konate if he doesn’t want to extend his contract
There’s no denying that Liverpool would be better off keeping Konate at the club than they would be selling him this summer.
However, if he doesn’t want to extend his stay at Anfield, then the best thing for them to do would be to sell up.
That is, especially after they already lost one of their most important players in Alexander-Arnold for nothing this summer.
Games Goals Assists
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The 2024-25 season of Trent Alexander-Arnold in numbers.
Indeed, players such as Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi have been linked with a Liverpool move, and while he’d be an impressive replacement, the Reds would still be short in the centre-back department.
At the moment, it’s anyone’s guess what’s going to happen, but with the way things are headed, Liverpool getting Rodrygo or a decent chunk of change for the centre-back seems to be the best-case scenario.