European giants step up transfer interest in ‘authoritative’ Liverpool star

Liverpool have been busy ever since the 2025-26 season kicked off.

Although most fans expected plenty of change to occur at Anfield, nobody could have anticipated the massive summer of spending that Arne Slot and Richard Hughes sanctioned.

The fact that the Anfield outfit chose to sign both Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz is unheard of with many fans expecting the Reds to have one of the best teams in the world.

This obviously hasn't been the case but, the fact that so many changes were made could mean that they'll need time to settle in.

And, even though most of Liverpool's fanbase will want to keep their first-team squad around, it seems like they could be about to lose one of their star men to a European giant.

Real Madrid re-enter the race for Ibrahima Konate

If Liverpool don't manage to win the Champions League or the FA Cup this season, some serious questions will need to be asked.

Last term, the Reds were one of the most dominant teams in the world with Slot managing to deliver the Premier League title during his first season in charge.

Granted, a lot of this was down to the record-breaking season that Mohamed Salah endured but, even though the Egyptian King has dropped off a bit this season, that doesn't mean that Liverpool should lose all of their cohesion.

However, things could end up being even worse for them next season, especially after it was reported that Ibrahima Konate was on Real Madrid's shortlist once again.

That is according to an update from Matte Moretto via Madrid Xtra who said the following about the Frenchman's future.

"BREAKING: Konate is BACK as an option," they wrote.

"Real Madrid have recently contacted him to ask about his situation again."

Liverpool cannot allow Ibrahima Konate to exit Anfield for nothing in the summer

The fact that Konate has been described as an "authoritative" player in the past says all you need to know about the Frenchman.

Ever since Joel Matip retired, the centre-back has been Virgil van Dijk's partner in crime and has even outperformed the Dutchman on occasion.

Admittedly, the 2025-26 season has been far from his best in a Liverpool shirt but, with the number of injuries that the Anfield outfit's defence have suffered this term, he's still been their second-best centre-back.

If Slot and Hughes managed to get a decent fee for the defender, his sale would make plenty of sense, but, since his deal is set to expire at the end of the campaign, the fact that he could leave L4 for nothing is scary.

Liverpool already lost Trent Alexander-Arnold for nothing to Los Blancos last term and, if history repeats itself, it's hard to see how fans could forgive their club.

Indeed, new centre-backs could be brought in as replacements but, with the amount of money Liverpool spent this summer, it's unlikely that another overhaul will take place.

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