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Jurgen Klopp has sent an emphatic message over future of Liverpool defender
Having started the summer as first choice at Liverpool, Ibrahima Konate’s frustrating time with injuries limited him to less than half of the campaign in 2022/23.
After nudging ahead of Joel Matip as Jurgen Klopp’s preferred partner at centre-back next to Virgil van Dijk in the closing weeks of the 21/22 term, the France international looked set to truly establish himself as one of the most commanding young defenders on the continent 12 months ago.
An injury picked up in a meaningless and unnecessary pre-season friendly against Strasbourg at Anfield, barely 24 hours after winning the Community Shield against Manchester City, derailed progress for Konate, however.
Instead of going from strength to strength next to a defender as revered as Van Dijk, the former RB Leipzig man was sidelined for around two-and-a-half months and was forced to wait until mid-October for his first start of the campaign, which came in the 7-1 win against Rangers at Ibrox.
His absence was keenly felt as Liverpool suffered defeats at Arsenal, Manchester United and Napoli alongside draws with Fulham, Crystal Palace and Everton during the opening weeks.
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Konate was forced to bide his time in the Premier League until early November when he finally started next to Van Dijk in an impressive 2-1 win at Tottenham. By then, though, the World Cup in Qatar was firmly in focus and the les Bleus international was making just his fourth start in any competition by the time Brentford humbled the Reds 3-1 in west London on January 2.
The performance against Spurs showcased everything Liverpool had missed during a difficult and at times harrowing opening few months of an ultimately disappointing term. His speed, strength and composure in possession helped stabilise a defence that was being cut through all too easily at the time.
Konate could quite easily have returned to Merseyside as a world champion but suffered heartbreak as his nation were beaten on penalties by Argentina shortly before Christmas in the Qatar final.
His exertions in the Middle East meant he was only considered to be part of the bench for the 2-1 win over Leicester just before New Year’s Eve at Anfield as his struggle to build up and real momentum in a Reds shirt continued into 2023.
From January 7, though, the message from Klopp was clear where Konate was concerned. If the Frenchman was fit, he would start. The only time he appeared as part of the substitutes’ bench for the remainder of the year was in last week’s 4-4 draw with Southampton, in a game when the manager made seven changes for a game that meant little.
Konate spent a month on the shelf with another injury concern in February, missing five matches in total after picking up a hamstring problem in the FA Cup defeat at Brighton. He did eventually prove his fitness to star alongside Van Dijk for the historic 7-0 win over Manchester United in early March, but he was unable to halt defeats at both Real Madrid and Manchester City before the end of that month.
The beginning of April would mark the tactical tweak that has since placed a lot of extra demands on the right-sided centre-back in Klopp’s defensive system. The decision to essentially allow Trent Alexander-Arnold a midfield role when in possession effectively increases the burden of responsibility on Konate, who, in fairness, has thrived in the role while Liverpool have gone 11 games unbeaten – nine of those with the 24-year-old starting.
Perhaps the best performance of those games came in the second half of the 2-2 draw with Arsenal when Konate was outstanding in repelling Gunners counter-attacks as Alexander-Arnold first got to grips with his new-found freedom under Klopp. A superb, last-gasp save from Aaron Ramsdale only denied the defender capping off a sensational half with a winning goal at the Kop End.
“I think it is important that we can involve Trent further up the field because of the quality he has in his game,” Konate said recently. “We all know what a great passer of the ball he is – I’d say he is one of the best passers of the ball in the world.
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“I think it has made us more clinical and decisive in front of goal and let’s face it, to win games you have to score goals. We do talk but the main thing is we all know our roles and we know what to do.
“Obviously when you try to communicate in a noisy stadium sometimes you can’t hear anybody but yes I do have more responsibility now. The main thing is you are doing it not for yourself but for the team and certainly I am finishing games a little bit more tired than I used to!”
Konate’s specific skill set marks him out as one of the most ideal candidates to thrive in the absence of a recognised right-back for help going forward. His pace, positioning and ability to read the game make him the almost perfect gatekeeper to allow Alexander-Arnold to maraud. His long-term future is unquestionably as a star of the Liverpool team, despite an injury-hit few months in a team in transition.
The 2022/23 season was not as eventful or as memorable as his maiden one at the club but few are doubting the defender’s potential to become of Europe’s best in the coming years.
End-of-season rating 6
Alisson Becker rating
Trent Alexander-Arnold rating
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