Liverpool Close to Ibrahima Konate Contract Extension as Fabrizio Romano Reveals Breakthrough
Ben McAleer
Liverpool are edging closer to agreeing a new deal with star centre-back Ibrahima Konate, according to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano.
The Frenchman’s current contract expires this summer, and there were genuine concerns that he’d leave for free later this year.
Ligue 1 champions PSG, La Liga powerhouse Real Madrid and Serie A league leaders Inter Milan had all been credited with an interest in the former RB Leipzig man with a view to a free move.
Interested parties set to miss out on Konate
However, the trio, among others, are set to be left disappointed with Konate now reportedly on the cusp of agreeing terms with Liverpool.
The Reds have been desperate to extend Konate’s stay on Merseyside, but talks had stalled in recent months.
And having reached a breakthrough in negotiations, Konate now looks set to put pen to paper on a new deal with the defending Premier League champions.
Negotiations at 'final stages'
“These negotiations are moving to the final stages. So the agreement between Konate and Liverpool is getting closer, it’s almost there,” Romano said.
“It’s not done, signed and completed yet, and we have to wait until the very end before saying it’s done, because with free agents and really important players like Konate, everything can happen in five minutes.
“But in this case, Konate and Liverpool are advancing very well in conversations to get the new contract sorted and done.
“The salary is almost agreed, the length of contract is being discussed. There are some clauses to clarify, but Konate and Liverpool are almost there.”
Konate extension a boost
The news will come as a boost for Liverpool, who have endured a sub-par second season under Arne Slot.
Liverpool find themselves 21 points behind league leaders Arsenal with seven games to play, while they fell to a poor 2-0 Champions League quarter-final first leg defeat to PSG on Wednesday night.
Pressure is mounting on Slot to turn the club’s fortunes around, and it remains to be seen whether he’ll be Liverpool manager by the time the 2026-27 season comes around.
