Ibrahima Konate is “finished” at Liverpool once this season reaches its conclusion, according to a big claim from former scout Mick Brown.
The Frenchman was in awful form earlier in the season amid rumoured interest from Real Madrid, with his contract expiring in the summer.
In fairness to Konate, he has improved of late, but there is still no guarantee that he will sign an extension, or if Liverpool will want him to stay put.
Speaking to Football Insider, Brown claimed that the 26-year-old will be “finished” with the Reds when the 2025/26 campaign comes to an end.
“Konate has made far too many mistakes that end up being costly,” Brown said.
“Mistakes and centre-halves don’t go together, if you want to be successful you can’t afford to be worrying about whether your defenders are going to mess it up.
“They have to be reliable and dependable, and Liverpool don’t think Konate is one of those. He hasn’t signed a new contract, and Liverpool are okay with that, they’re not going to keep offering him new ones when he isn’t earning it on the pitch.
“Slot isn’t happy with the way he’s been playing, so he’s ready to let him go and then they’ll want to bring in somebody to upgrade on him.
“Konate is finished at Liverpool at the end of the season, they’re going to let him go and then move to bring in a more reliable and accomplished replacement.”
Is Konate more likely to stay or leave Liverpool?
This is only Brown’s opinion, of course, and Liverpool supporters are likely to be split when it comes to what they want to see happen with Konate this summer.
His form has been better in recent weeks, and on his day, he has a top-level centre-back, with Virgil van Dijk hailing him as “outstanding” last season.
That said, Konate’s form has been patchy and he can have spells of terrible form, and he has reached the age where he needs to be exceptional on a weekly basis.
Overall, a contract extension still makes the most sense, but if all parties can’t come to an agreement, seeing him move on won’t feel like the end of the world.