Liverpool star now set to stay after dramatic news | OneFootball

Ibrahima Konate will leave Liverpool at the end of the season. His contract expires and there won't be a new one after player and club failed to find new terms.

That was reported at the back end of last week and confirmed by the club to start this one. Liverpool need to move forward without a starting centre-back - and that creates a real problem.

The Reds also need to sign players in about five other positions. Finding a decent, senior, starting centre-back is near-impossible for good money and that explains why Liverpool have reportedly decided to abandon the idea before they've started.

The Athletic reports that Joe Gomez will remain at the club despite strong links away and despite entering the final year of his contract. He'll be the 'other' senior option alongside Virgil van Dijk, with Jeremy Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni providing alternatives.

Though, that's risky. Jacquet would be the only one of the four who hasn't had serious knee surgery - and he's coming off shoulder surgery to join a new team in a new country at a higher level.

Van Dijk, the best defender by some margin, will be 35 by the start of the new campaign. He's also the most reliably-fit player of the bunch and coming off a season where he played every minute.

It all feels like an enormous risk, to be honest. Gomez is a fine defender if he can stay reliably fit but history tells us that won't be the case.

And that piles the pressure on some young defenders.

Joe Gomez: Situation Summary

Liverpool Campaign and Stats

As of 31 May 2026, Joe Gomez has concluded his eleventh domestic campaign with Liverpool. The 29-year-old English defender endured a largely peripheral role throughout a turbulent season, primarily operating as a utility option across the backline. Gomez made 21 Premier League appearances—with 14 of those coming from the substitutes' bench—logging just 599 minutes of league action and contributing two assists. He finished the year with a brief cameo appearance in a 1–1 draw against Brentford on 24 May, as the Reds ultimately missed out on a top-four finish.

Transfer Twist and Anfield Stay

Gomez's future on Merseyside had been shrouded in doubt as he prepares to enter the final year of his contract, with Aston Villa heavily linked. However, a sudden defensive crisis has completely altered the club's plans. Following the shock news that Ibrahima Konaté will leave Anfield on a free transfer, senior sources indicate that Liverpool now intend to block any summer exit. The club’s longest-serving player is expected to stay for the 2026/27 campaign to provide vital senior depth alongside Virgil van Dijk.