Liverpool appear to want Ibrahima Konate for their defence. The way they’re going about it would pile enormous pressure on the player, however.
We’ve seen Liverpool linked with Ibrahima Konate before. BILD journalist Christian Falk claimed as much, saying the Reds hold interest in both him and teammate Dayot Upamecano.
And Rory Smith of the New York Times appears to confirm that Liverpool want Konate – he’s the long-term target.
“I think Liverpool intend to sign a centre-back in the summer and I think that central defender is probably someone they will play against in the Champions League’s Last 16. And I don’t think it’s going to be Dayot Upamecano,” he told the Guardian’s Football Weekly.
We can pretty safely assume that’s Konate, then.
This plan is high-risk, though. It’s also one that will place enormous pressure on Konate, if he is the one they want.
Chosen one
Liverpool are harming their season by not signing a defender – there’s no doubt about that. They’re trying to win the title without using their best defenders with no replacements for them.
It actually sounds insane put like that – how can they possibly compete?
Still, they clearly believe they can as they wait for the perfect player. Liverpool don’t do ‘short-term fixes’, per the Athletic.
It means that when the centre-half does arrive, they will have the ‘perfect’ label on them. And that’s not a good thing.
This will be the player Liverpool risked their title challenge on. In fact, with their current form, it’ll be the player they risked Top 4 on.
That’s a tough label for any player to carry, let alone a young defender playing in a new country. But that’s the game here.
Liverpool are taking a huge risk by not signing anyone – a risk that could affect their summer spending. But they want a perfect player or nothing.
Let’s hope whoever arrives – Konate or not – lives up to that as it’s certainly how they’ll be judged.
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