**Liverpool are “prepared” to sell Ibrahima Konate in the January transfer window, assuming they bring another centre-back to the club.**
The Frenchman has endured a season to forget so far, despite some improvements of late, with his contract expiring at the end of the current campaign.
In an interview with [_Football Insider_](https://www.footballinsider247.com/liverpool-plan-to-accept-ibrahima-konate-offer/), former scout Mick Brown surprisingly claimed that Liverpool could still accept an offer for Konate in next month’s transfer window.
“If they can find a replacement, they’ll be prepared to let him go,” Brown said.
“At the moment it’s a difficult situation, because the manager is obviously not happy with his performances and would like to improve there, but it’s not easy to do.
“We’ve said for a long time that Liverpool have got concerns about Konate. After the Leeds game the manager came out and pretty much said he’s been at fault for too many of the goals they’ve conceded this season.
“That doesn’t come as a surprise to me, and it won’t have come as a surprise to them either. If he doesn’t want to sign a new contract, it makes sense for them to make some money from him, so like I say if they have the chance to move him on, I think they will.
“He makes far too many mistakes to be part of a team who wins titles regularly, they got away with it last season but they’re not any more, that’s a position they need to upgrade.”
**Why would Liverpool sell Konate in January?**
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Konate’s form this season hasn’t been good enough, but selling him midway through the campaign would be a bizarre decision, even if it means earning money for him.
Joe Gomez picked up an injury in Saturday’s 2-0 win at home to Brighton in the Premier League, while Giovanni Leoni is out for the rest of the season.
That leaves Konate and 34-year-old Virgil van Dijk as the only fit centre-back options for Liverpool currently, with the former not exactly without injury problems in his career.
A new central defender is arguably needed for the Reds next month, but not in place of Konate, who was described as “fantastic” by [Van Dijk](https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/virgil-van-dijk-sends-clear-33055444) after the Brighton victory.
Whether he signs a new deal remains to be seen, or if the Reds want him to, but for now, he remains an important figure until the summer.