Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk and Curtis Jones of Liverpool talk to each other during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Brighton & Hove Albion at Anfield on December 13, 2025 in Liverpool, Englandplaceholder image
Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk and Curtis Jones of Liverpool talk to each other during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Brighton & Hove Albion at Anfield on December 13, 2025 in Liverpool, England | Getty Images
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has issued some public praise for one of his teammates
Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has hailed centre-back partner Ibrahima Konate as a “fantastic defender” and insists the Frenchman wants the best for the club after a difficult few months on the pitch.
Konate has been heavily criticised for some of his performances this campaign as uncertainty remains over his long-term future at the club. He is entering the final months of his contract at Anfield and no agreement on a new deal is in sight as things stand.
Liverpool have been poor defensively for much of the campaign, with a lot of the blame pointed towards Konate amid a litany of individual errors. However, Van Dijk has leapt to the Frenchman’s defence in an interview with the official club website.
“Ibou is a fantastic defender. Obviously when the team is not performing as a collective, then we as the last line could be exposed. And that happened at times as well,” said the Dutchman.
“Individual mistakes cost us, including myself at times. Unfortunately, that’s part of the game. It’s how you deal with it, how you react to it.
“I think Ibou, as an example, has been in the last two games especially outstanding. He’s working on things, like we all do. He helps me, I help him and that’s how it should be. We are not perfect.
“He wants the best for the club and I’m pretty sure that will be absolutely fine.”
In his last two games, Liverpool World has handed Konate 8/10 for his performances. He was rock solid against Inter Milan in a 1-0 Champions League win last week and was unlucky to see a goal chalked off by VAR for a handball in the build-up.
Konate has addressed his contract situation recently, as he spoke while on international duty with France last month.
“It’s clear we think about it,” he told Telefoot. “But what’s complicated is that we can’t say everything because there’s a lot of things being said in the media.
“Sometimes I see things and I’m like, ‘oh la la’, and it gets me into trouble with the Liverpool fans even though they don’t know all the ins and outs.
“Anyway, I hope and I know that in any case the most important thing is that I’m happy. We’ll see (if an announcement is made soon), we will see. In any case we hope so."
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