Ibrahima Konate may have dropped a big hint that he intends to stay at Liverpool beyond this season, with the defender insisting “with time, we will win trophies.”
Konate now only has three months remaining on his contract at Liverpool and as it stands he is yet to agree an extension.
That would suggest the Frenchman is heading for the exit, with Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain among the clubs linked with a free transfer.
But asked by ESPN why he feels Liverpool have struggled this season, Konate took a long-term view that indicated that he sees himself staying at Anfield.
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“We can say many, many, many, many things. Because we were champions last season, people are going to talk,” he said.
“We brought new players, many things happened, we lost a player when we started the season.
“Many things happened to us this season, but what people have to understand is before we won the league last season, we just built the team to win the Premier League in one moment.
“This is part of the success. This is the way to success. Now we bring new players, of course they will not perform straight from the first game.
LONDON, ENGLAND - Sunday, January 4, 2026: Liverpool's Ibrahima Konaté during the pre-match warm-up before the FA Premier League match between Fulham FC and Liverpool FC at Craven Cottage. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
“And this is what I said with many players. I won’t say their names because it’s not important, but I said: ‘We just have to be relaxed, because this is part of success’.
“We bring new players, we will adapt, we will try to work and understand each other all together.
“And at a point, with time, we will win trophies, we will have success.
“When we win the league or the Champions League, people will forget every bad season that we had.
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“We have to be relaxed. We have amazing fans, we have to stay together and the success will come for sure – maybe this season or maybe in the future, for sure.”
Ibrahima Konate
“We won the league last season, but two years before we played Europa League. People don’t talk about this any more, but this is just part of the success.
“We have to be relaxed. We have amazing fans, we have to stay together and the success will come for sure – maybe this season or maybe in the future, for sure.”
While this is far from conclusive proof that Konate is set to stay at Liverpool, they are certainly not the words of a player who is already planning for life in Madrid or Paris.
Talks are ongoing between the club and his representatives, and as with new deals for Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah this time last year, there remains a strong chance that the No. 5 eventually re-signs.
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