Ibrahima Konate was notably absent from training and Liverpool’s travelling squad, but Arne Slot did not, nor could not, make a definitive stance on whether he will play against Marseille.
The centre-back was not present at the AXA Training Centre on Tuesday as he was already in France due to family reasons, as was reported.
There remained question marks over whether he would later rejoin the team ahead of kickoff in Marseille on Wednesday evening, to which Slot neither confirmed nor denied on the eve of the match.
“Ibou did not travel with us because of family matters and I will leave it at that,” Slot told reporters when asked if it was possible he would join the team on Wednesday.
“I will speak to him again tomorrow, but he did not travel with us,” he reiterated. “I will leave it at that.”
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - Saturday, January 17, 2026: Liverpool's Ibrahima Konaté (L) and goalkeeper Alisson Becker react to conceeding the equalising goal during the FA Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Burnley FC at Anfield. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
With no guarantee that Liverpool’s No. 5 will be available to Slot against Marseille, Joe Gomez will be expected to line up alongside Virgil van Dijk for only the second time this season at centre-back.
Konate, while inconsistent with his form, has been an ever-present for Liverpool this season having started 29 of the 32 games so far, with his injury woes yet to rear their head.
His availability has been a necessity with Giovanni Leoni suffering a season-ending ACL injury and Gomez acting as the only other specialist option after Marc Guehi’s failed signing.
Only Virgil van Dijk (2,700) and Dominik Szoboszlai (2,603) have played more minutes for the Reds than Konate (2,512) this season.
Liverpool face Marseille knowing one point will guarantee a place in the knockout stages, but more will be needed across their final two games to bypass the two-legged playoff in February.