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Liverpool has been told it may need to withdraw any offer of a new contract for Ibrahima Konate if the defender’s performances don’t improve.
Konate’s future is a major talking point for the Reds, with his current deal set to expire in the summer. Speculation has been ongoing over the past 12 months, with the French international linked with following Trent Alexander-Arnold to Real Madrid.
The 26-year-old has previously spoken out about his talks with Liverpool, although contract discussions look to have stalled, with fears that he could become the next player to make the move to the Bernabeu for nothing.
Konate’s contract has come to the fore recently amid what has been a disappointing start to the season for the Reds, with the defender facing plenty of scrutiny over his performances. His compatriot and former Chelsea defender Frank Leboeuf though feels he shouldn’t be the only one under the microscope.
“It's been complicated,” Leboeuf told OLBG. “We cannot be blind and avoid seeing what everybody sees and it's obvious, but he’s not the only one guilty. I mean, the whole team has been poorer than last season.
“We can start with Virgil van Dijk, with of course, Andy Robertson when he played, even if he's a little bit better than Milos Kerkez, it's complicated.
“Even the young Conor Bradley is not as good as last season, we would have thought that the defensive aspect of covering Trent Alexander-Arnold would be resolved, but it's not.
“Alexis Mac Allister was only a shadow of himself at the beginning of the season. He seems to be a little bit better, but we don't know yet. So Ibrahima is not the Ibrahima that we saw last season, especially, but the season before, he had some issues as well. So he had one good season.”
Leboeuf does feel that Liverpool should do all it can to renew Konate’s contract - as long as his wage demands are reasonable. If not, and his performances continue to attract criticism, then he believes the Reds should pull the plug.
“I know that he has to renew his contract,” Leboeuf added. “I've talked to Steve Nicol because I work with him and he's a legend. I said if he's reasonable at his asking price, that should be done.
“If he asks for too much, I think Liverpool should say no. But Ibrahima is a great player, he is a great lad, is dedicated to his club and he will give 100 per cent to Liverpool.
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“But he has to work harder right now to make sure the goal that he conceded against Manchester City, the header, he has to get the ball. That's something he should be able to do.
“I wasn't as good as him defensively, but I'm capable of seeing when he has to improve his game. Again, a great player, I think the club, the coach should trust him to get better because he will.
“Again, what I like about players like that is you can see that they give 100 per cent. They're not faking it.”
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