‘In the balance’ – Ibou Konate contract claim emerges with Real Madrid ‘cooling their interest’ | OneFootball

Ibrahima Konate has just seven months remaining on his current contract at Liverpool, and his future remains firmly in the balance.

The Frenchman has been frequently criticised over his performances this season but has maintained a weekly starting berth at Anfield, albeit with Joe Gomez as the sole senior centre-back alternative available to Arne Slot.

Last month, the 26-year-old dismissed reports that LFC chiefs had presented him with a final contract offer; and despite abundant rumours of interest from Real Madrid, The Athletic reported in recent days that the Bernabeu hierarchy don’t intend to pursue the Reds’ number 5.

Liverpool ‘remain committed’ to Konate contract renewal

In his latest Liverpool Confidential roundup for Mail Sport, Lewis Steele provided an update on Konate’s situation on Merseyside.

He outlined that, with Los Blancos ‘cooling their interest’ in the France international, Anfield chiefs ‘remain committed’ to renewing his contract, and ‘active talks’ are ongoing between the relevant parties to try and reach an agreement.

While the 26-year-old’s future ‘remains in the balance’, Liverpool will avoid making any rash judgements on the defender despite his decline in performances this season, with his ‘sky-high level’ throughout the Premier League-winning campaign not being forgotten by those in the boardroom.

(Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

Can Konate and Liverpool bridge their gap in ‘expectations’?

There appears to be a willingness on both sides for a contract renewal, but whether the club and Konate can strike an agreement on terms is the big question.

Steele mentioned in his report that the player and the hierarchy have ‘so far seemed apart in their expectations’, and the clock is ticking rapidly for that apparent gap to be bridged. As it stands, overseas suitors can negotiate a pre-contract agreement with the Frenchman from next month.

For all the criticism that the 26-year-old has shipped, many of his underlying performance numbers have actually improved from last season. Unfortunately, as per the table below (citing figures from FBref), the one which has radically disimproved is the frequency of errors.

With Slot having just three senior centre-backs to call upon until Giovanni Leoni recovers from his long-term ACL injury, Liverpool aren’t in a position to be flippant about Konate’s future, although there seems to be a concerted effort to try and resolve the situation.

Now that Real Madrid appear to be out of the picture, can player and club come to an agreement and bring an end to months of speculation surrounding the Frenchman?

You can watch Slot’s full post-Sunderland press conference below, via Empire of the Kop on YouTube: