There’s still plenty of uncertainty around Liverpool’s defence past the end of the season, but the buy-back clause they have for Bayer Leverkusen’s Jarell Quansah is not the answer.
That’s the current state of play, anyway. Liverpool can re-sign Quansah for £70 million due to a condition they negotiated with the Bundesliga outfit upon selling him last summer, but that isn’t the direction they want to go in.
Rather, they are focusing on locking down a player who they wouldn’t need to fork out such a fee for. That player is current Red Ibrahima Konate, who has been identified by Florian Plettenberg as priority number one for next season.
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PSG players celebrate after scoring during the Ligue 1 match against Toulouse at the Parc des Princes (Credit: Getty Images/Tnani Badreddine/DeFodi Images).
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Liverpool prefer to extend Ibrahima Konate than re-sign Jarell Quansah
There is a feeling at the club that Quansah will be back in a red shirt at some point in the future. For now though, Konate is the man they want paired with Virgil van Dijk at the back.
As Plettenberg shared on his X account: “Liverpool still have the option to activate a buy-back clause for Jarell Quansah until the end of May, set at €80 million.
“So far, however, Leverkusen have received no indication – neither from the player nor from Liverpool. LFC‘s current focus is on extending Ibrahima Konaté’s contract.”
On that front, progress is being made. A L’Equipe report claimed Konate is likely to stay at Liverpool and an agreement has never been closer.
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Ibrahima Konate of Liverpool FC looks on after the match with Galatasaray
Credit: Burak Basturk/Middle East Images/AFP/Getty Images
It’s the preferable option for Liverpool. As good as Quansah is, replacing Konate with him would make Van Dijk the only centre-back at the club with the kind of seniority you want at the heart of a title-contending defence.
Jeremy Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni will have a clear role. If it was Quansah instead of Konate it could create too much uncertainty about the strongest partnership. This way, the hierarchy is clear, but obviously the two youngsters can play themselves into contention.
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