‘Quietly outstanding’: BBC pundit blown away by 22-year-old Liverpool man

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Garth Crooks has labelled Ibrahima Konate ‘quietly outstanding’ as Liverpool beat Manchester United on Sunday, and told BBC Sport that he fit the Reds lineup like a glove.

Jurgen Klopp’s men dismantled their rivals at Old Trafford this weekend. Mohamed Salah scored a hat-trick, while Naby Keita and Diogo Jota also got on the scoresheet in a 5-0 win.

What was so impressive about Liverpool was that they did not even need to be at their best to rip Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side apart.

Nevertheless, when they were needed to keep the home side out, Konate and Virgil Van Dijk managed to step up and help ensure that the visitors also left with another away clean sheet this term.

Konate was a surprise inclusion for the game. Joel Matip has been outstanding so far this term. In fact, it appears that many felt that he had been better than Van Dijk in the opening weeks of the campaign.

But Crooks suggested that Konate more than vindicated Klopp’s decision, starting by lauding the defender as he named Van Dijk in his team of the week.

“In a game where Liverpool won 5-0 against a top-four contender, his partner Ibrahima Konate was quietly outstanding in what will be remembered as one of the great victories by a Liverpool side at Old Trafford,” he told BBC Sport, when discussing the Dutchman.

“The French centre-back – signed in the summer from RB Leipzig – is the latest addition to this Liverpool team and fits like a glove,” he added.

Konate provides an exciting glimpse of the future in emphatic Liverpool win at Manchester United

It is remarkable to think that Konate was making only his third Liverpool appearance in the win. He had previously only featured in one Premier League game. They are yet to concede a goal when he has played.

He has left Klopp with food for thought. But he has also helped show how bright the future for the Reds is, with another young player producing a superb display in the early stages of his Liverpool career.