Ibrahima Konaté’s World Cup final was only eight minutes long but he still earned plaudits in France. The Liverpool defender excelled.
We were a little surprised that Didier Deschamps didn’t start Ibrahima Konaté against Argentina in the World Cup final. The Liverpool centre-back has been brilliant every step of the way for the reigning champions.
In fact, he was particularly impressive in the semi-final against Morocco. Deschamps dropped him for the showpiece, though, as he returned to Raphael Varane and Dayot Upamecano – his preferred pairing.
Well, things didn’t exactly go to plan. Argentina were dominant in the final, racing into a 2-0 first-half lead. While France came back in the end and forced penalties, they just couldn’t handle to movement and energy of their opponents.
Eventually, Varane collapsed under it all. He needed to go off in extra-time, giving Konaté eight minutes to impress in a World Cup final. He somehow managed it.
Not too much was said in the French media about his performance but it was positive. L’Équipe describe him as ‘huge as soon as he came on’ – which about sums up Konaté.
Le10Sport were another who mentioned the 23-year-old. “The Liverpool defender came in with a warrior mentality, not hesitating to tackle when the opportunity presented itself,” they wrote.
Ibrahima Konaté’s World Cup final
It’ll be gutting for Konaté that he had to watch France’s collapse from the bench. We can’t help but feel that he’d have made a big difference in their XI from the start and we’re 90 per cent sure that isn’t just bias talking.
He’s been impressive every step of the way in Qatar, after all. Konaté significantly boosted his reputation outside of Merseyside, proving to be one of the more accomplished defenders around.
We have no doubt, in fact, that he’ll be starting for France at the next World Cup. Liverpool have a very special player here and this winter confirmed that beyond any doubt.
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