Liverpool center-back Ibrahima Konate has sent a passionate message to fans on social media after Arne Slot's team lost a third successive game by three goals amid a defensive nightmare.
PSV became the latest team to find it easy to cut through the Liverpool team. Konate was among a number of players who underperformed in the Champions League, with the Reds going down 4-1 in the end on home soil.
"We have to take this moment on the chest," he wrote on Instagram. "Criticism is part of football, and we'll fight back every time and come through this storm.
"In these moments, the fans matter most. The ones who stand with us in the good times and the bad — the ones who sing for us even in the difficult moments!
"Your voice and your support mean everything to us. We know we need to improve and we'll keep fighting for you. Always."
Slot revealed today that Konate missed a couple of Liverpool training sessions ahead of his side's heavy defeat against PSV in the Champions League.
Ibrahima Konate during Liverpool vs PSV in the Champions League.
Liverpool center-back Ibrahima Konate. (Image: Molly Darlington/Copa/Getty Images)
While Joe Gomez was fit enough to be involved in the game, Slot decided to keep him on the bench and go with the ex-RB Leipzig ace from the off.
"[Gomez] is close," Slot said during his pre-West Ham United press conference. "He could have been involved yesterday for minutes but when we are two or three-one down, I tend to make offensive subs.
"For him to start is definitely a possibility. Konate didn't train two days before; he was a liability before the game, so it was a risk. I decided to keep him there in case Ibou was injured."
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Konate is likely to be in the team again at the weekend when Liverpool travels to the London Stadium. After that, the Reds will take on Sunderland and Leeds United.
As things stand, Liverpool is 12th in the Premier League, below both Everton and Manchester United.
Liverpool.com says: Konate has been in really bad form this season, just like the rest of the team. Whether that is down to his contract situation or not, the Frenchman needs to rediscover his confidence.
There are basically no other options to play alongside Virgil van Dijk at the moment, which is a major problem. Whenever he makes an error, several more are not far away, such is the fragile state of his mentality.