Next season will be crucial for Liverpool. After five years of steady progress gave the Champions League and Premier League, you can take the odd bad season on the chin.
However, the world will see how they bounce back. Was 2020/21 a bowling stop at the end of an era? Or was it just a footnote within a legacy that will yield many more trophies in the years to come?
If Liverpool want to be sure that it is the latter, they must get their recruitment right this summer. The squad is in need of serious cosmetic surgery, and according to The Athletic, RB Leipzig’s Ibrahima Konate is on the agenda.
The 21-year-old is said to be in “advanced talks” with the Reds, who can circumvent Leipzig completely by fulfilling his release clause of 40 million euros.
In his face, it’s pretty obvious what he’s bringing to the table. At 6’4 he is one of the few key defenders on the planet who can compete with Virgil van Dijk for flying ability, and he is at an age where he can develop into a long-term replacement for the Dutchman – while he still has the necessary ability to contribute now.
Liverpool look set to complete a deal to sign RB Leipzig center-back Ibrahima Konate. ✍️?
– 90min (@ 90min_Football) March 29, 2021
Skillfully, he looks like a perfect fit for Red’s back line. After starting his life as a striker and idolizing Ronaldo Nazario in his early teens, he knows how to play with the ball at his feet. With 85% passing accuracy in his last ten matches, he performs roughly in line with Van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip in that respect.
He competes with all of the above in key areas of central defense – flight duels, tackles, interceptions, you name it – and comparisons have been made with Dayot Upamecano, given that they are both dominant defenders playing for the same team.
Former Leipzig boss Ralf Rangnick notes, however, that Konate relies much less on his physical qualities and more on his brain.
? Of the 267 players competing in over 20 flight duels, Ibrahima Konate has the best flying success rate (85.7%) in the Bundesliga this season.
? ️ Liverpool are working to complete a deal for RB Leipzig midfielder, reports @David_Ornstein pic.twitter.com/Z7ybGb0Qrj
– WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) March 29, 2021
“While Dayot relies heavily on his body and pace, Ibu plays with his head more,” Rangnick said earlier. “He has high expectations and positioning.”
Take all this and combine it with his personality – former agent Bruno Satin described him in The Athletic as “incredibly humble and always wants to learn” – and it becomes clear to see why Liverpool are so keen to bring him in. Young, athletic, technically skilled and humble – he is basically the textbook FSG signing.
The big question mark over his signing is his fitness record, but The Athletic notes that he has only had one serious injury – a hip flexion problem that arose earlier this season. Other injuries, such as the ankle problem that kept him out of the Champions League match with the Reds earlier this season, have not shown any signs of having a long-term effect on his condition.
Konate was part of the Leipzig team that removed Man Utd from the Champions League | Boris Streubel / Getty Images
You could make the case that his recently injured accident opens the door further for Liverpool. The Reds are known for their opportunistic signings, and the constraints on Konate’s playing time have cooled interest from elsewhere, giving Liverpool a clear boost to drive the deal home in the coming weeks.
Do not agree to move Konate to your Liverpool team at FIFA yet. As we saw with Nabil Fekir a couple of years ago, there is plenty of room for unforeseen road bumps even when things seem to go smoothly.
Liverpool are interested in Ibrahima Konaté, as @David_Ornstein reported today. He is one of the goals on Liverpool’s central defender list, but it is not clear / signed yet.
RB Leipzig wants a full release clause of 40 million euros to sell him. Talks are ongoing on personal terms [until June 2026]. ? #LFC
– Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) March 29, 2021
Everything will be planned, however, but it seems that he is one of the flagship signings in an unpredictable new era at Anfield.
Whether it is a successful one remains to be seen, but early signs suggest that with Konate starting a strong start.
