As Ibrahima Konate enters the final season of his current Liverpool contract, we all wonder how this one is going to play out.
You can’t help but see the similarities to the Trent Alexander-Arnold fiasco last season…
✓ New contract negotiations stall as player turns down new offers
✓ Speculation of a summer move to Real Madrid
✓ Player form dips to a previously unseen low
Trent hoodwinked us all last year, letting us believe he was just waiting for the right deal to be presented to him, while all along he was taking Spanish lessons in preparation for his unveiling at the Bernabeu. It felt like a stab in the back from one of our own and incensed Liverpool fans immensely.
Surely the club won’t make exactly the same mistakes this time? Real Madrid have history of tapping up players and waiting for their contracts to expire, from David Alaba to Antonio Rudiger and Kylian Mbappe. It’s looking pretty clear that Konate is being lined up as the next freebie at Los Blancos.
We shouldn’t let these player contracts get into the final year. We should negotiate a renewal or sell. It’s that simple and sends a clear messages to clubs like Real that they have to put their hands in their pockets if they want any of our players. It also ensures commitment from the player at a time when we really do need to make sure he wants to play for Liverpool.
I may be completely wrong. Richard Hughes may be a great poker player and be about to turn over a Royal Flush. We shall see…
