Fabrizio Romano has revealed that the Liverpool board are blown away by how good Ibrahima Konate has been since he joined the club last summer.
Jurgen Klopp’s side really struggled last season after all of his centre-halves suffered injuries. The Reds were even forced to use the likes of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho at the back at times, and they needed to prevent that from happening ever again.
Liverpool acted very quickly and triggered Konate’s £36 million release clause (Sky Sports). The deal was all done in May last year and the Frenchman made the switch to Merseyside in the summer.
Konate has been really good when he has played for Liverpool and FSG are so in love with him that they won’t sell him even if a club offers twice as much as what they paid for him last year, which would be upwards of £70 million.
Fabrizio Romano: Liverpool board think Ibrahima Konate is a gem
In his column on the Anfield Watch, Romano wrote: “One certainty was definitively confirmed in the win against Inter: Ibrahima Konate is an excellent defender.
“Inside the Liverpool board, there is the belief that they have found a gem in the Frenchman.
“Konate was on Thomas Tuchel’s list at Chelsea a year ago, but Liverpool were smart and quick to find an agreement on personal terms with Konate and his agents, paying the £35 million release clause.
“‘If someone wanted to buy Konate today, even double that fee would not be enough’, is the comment that emerges in the circles close to the Liverpool board.”
TBR View:
Konate was an incredible signing for Liverpool last year and the Reds deserve a lot of credit for snapping him up before other top teams could even enter the frame.
The Frenchman, still only 22 years old, has been given a lot of time by Klopp to settle in. He hasn’t been asked to play every game, but whenever he has played, he has been outstanding for Liverpool, even against the big sides.
If he continues to improve, Konate will be an incredible defender for years to come. It’s no surprise at all to hear that Liverpool would reject bids in excess of £70 million for him. He may well be worth more than that in just a few years time, which makes Klopp’s decision to sign him last summer look genius.
