Jamie Carragher has insisted Liverpool would be “absolutely fine” if Ibrahima Konate chooses to join Real Madrid on a free transfer in the summer.
Despite the France international’s contract expiring at the end of June, he has yet to sign a new contract at Anfield and there are reports that he could put his move to Spanish giants Real Madrid on hold.
Konate underperformed for much of the first half of the season, but he put in a great performance in Liverpool’s 1-0 win over Real Madrid in the Champions League in midweek.
The Frenchman is said to have scored a number of goals this season and Carragher believes Liverpool will be fine if Konate decides to pursue a move in a similar fashion to Trent Alexander-Arnold last summer.
Carragher told the Daily Mail: “I want him to stay, but if he doesn’t then Liverpool will sign someone else. Liverpool won’t collapse if Konate leaves.”
“He’s not Virgil van Dijk. He’s a good centre-back and everyone wants to sign him, but if he doesn’t want to sign him then Liverpool will have no problem with that.”
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“He’s a very good centre-back. He won the title with Liverpool and played in the Champions League final against Real Madrid. He’s obviously a quality centre-back.
“It’s not bad management (even if he goes free). You can’t physically make someone sign a contract. And it’s your decision. Do you keep him on contract or do you sell him?”
Liverpool missed out on signing Marc Guehi in the summer window after Crystal Palace withdrew their bid for the centre-back at the last minute, but new signing Giovanni Leoni is already suffering a serious injury.
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It means competition is limited for Konate, but Carragher has urged the Liverpool defender to show more consistency over the remainder of the season.
Carragher added: “It’s only been a few games. He hasn’t had a good start to the season and needs to show a bit more consistency.”
“He was great against Real Madrid and he needs to maintain that over the coming months. We can’t just stop at two games.
“There’s no secret[to getting back into shape]just work harder and be more professional. It’s always in your mind that you want to get back into good shape, and the little details like what you eat and what time you go to bed make a difference. You just have to be super professional on and off the pitch.”
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