Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes sees a new contract for Ibrahima Konate as a priority this summer, according to a fresh claim.
The Reds are now only two wins away from being crowned Premier League champions, following their 2-1 win at home to West Ham on Sunday afternoon.
Arne Slot’s side weren’t at their best against the Hammers, but they got the done, with Luis Diaz opening the scoring and Virgil van Dijk heading home a late winner.
Konate once again partnered the skipper at the heart of Liverpool’s defence and a key update has now emerged regarding his future.
According to Football Insider, a contract extension is a “top priority” for Hughes this summer, with the sporting director “leading the push” to get it done.
Liverpool want to tie down the Frenchman for the foreseeable future, amid interest from the likes of Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid, with his current deal running next year.
New Konate deal a no-brainer for Liverpool
Konate has been such an impressive signing for Liverpool since he arrived from RB Leipzig in 2021, becoming an undisputed key starter for the Reds.
While injury problems have been frustrating at times, he is one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League when he is fully fit, with Van Dijk saying of him:
“The qualities he has are outstanding in my opinion. He is learning, growing, getting better and looking after himself much better in order to be ready every three days as that’s what asked. And also we have a young player behind him in Jarrell, who is also doing well. We have to keep pushing each other and he is doing a good job.”
A new centre-back is vital this summer, in order to provide more competition and ensure that a long-term successor to Van Dijk is found, but a new contract for Konate is just as important.
This is crunch time, in terms of potentially losing him for free at the end of the season, which would be a terrible outcome, so Hughes is right in seeing this as a priority piece of business in the coming months.
0 Comments