Liverpool Confidential: Arne Slot’s giveaway clue that Ibrahima Konate is set to stay – and why Reds are rightly desperate to renew his contract – and the stats that prove set-piece guru has fixed club’s biggest weakness

If you had told a Liverpool fan in the first half of the season that Ibrahima Konate would get to within four months of being able to leave on a free transfer, some might have shrugged.

The Frenchman had a difficult start to the campaign and Arne Slot said he was ‘too much at the crime scene’ in damning quotes after a 3-3 draw at Leeds United, which ended up being buried when Mohamed Salah dropped his bombshell that the club had thrown him ‘under the bus’ five minutes later.

As the Reds won just four of 15 games between late September and an early-December win at Inter, Konate was far from his best. Far from the only problem – there were plenty, and nearly every player saw a drastic dip in form – but certainly a big issue.

Fast-forward a few months, however, and the defender is now back to a top level. Maybe not his best just yet, but certainly close to it.

Yet throughout his up-and-down form, one question hasn’t gone away: where will he be playing his football next season? As it stands, he is free to join any club on July 1, with his Liverpool deal set to expire at the end of the campaign.

To put it simply: forget that dip in form and take Konate’s five years at the club in the round – extending the defender’s contract must be top of Liverpool’s priority list in the next three months.

Konate can already agree a pre-contract with overseas clubs and will be a free agent on July 1 if Liverpool can’t sort out a new deal by then

This is not to say the above isn’t already the case. The club have made several concerted efforts to sort out the 26-year-old’s future.

If they had their way, Konate would have committed to them long ago, for it was autumn 2024 when they first made contact with his representatives over a new deal. The two parties have thus far been apart in their demands.

‘We are in talks with him so that tells you what we want,’ said Slot a fortnight ago. ‘It’s clear we would like him to stay but negotiations are ongoing so let’s see where that ends. We wouldn’t be in negotiations if we didn’t want him to stay.’

We don’t know exactly where Konate’s head is at in this saga – but it is clear he loves the club and enjoys his life at Liverpool. Real Madrid had posted an interest earlier in the season but that seems to have cooled.

Konate is crucial to Liverpool, though, and with Virgil van Dijk turning 35 in the summer, he could be the bridge between the present and future at the club with young Jeremy Jacquet and Giovanni Leoni, 20 and 19 respectively, both primed as long-term defensive options.

There was also a heart-warming moment on Sunday at Nottingham Forest where Konate gave a journalist his match-worn shirt as a gesture of gratitude for some dates, a popular snack with Muslims after breaking their Ramadan fasts.

No concrete updates have been offered in 2026 but he is certainly not as clear-cut a candidate for leaving Liverpool as he may have been. Even Slot openly discussing the club’s desire to keep him was telling – he did not do that with Salah or Van Dijk last year until new deals were close to being signed.

Just like the hierarchy did not panic about Slot’s future based on a few bad months, the club would not have let a tough start to the season cloud their judgment on Konate. They, rightly so, are desperate for him to renew.

Virgil van Dijk turns 35 this summer and his centre-back partner could be a crucial bridge to the new generation of Liverpool defenders

Reds are set-piece kings!

Move over Arsenal, Liverpool are better than you at set-pieces. In 2026, that is, anyway.

From taking a gulp and hoping for the best before Christmas, the Reds are now packing a punch in the six-yard box.

At the turn of the year, Slot’s men were rock bottom of the set-piece table, which is all the rage this season especially.

They had scored a league-low three goals from set-pieces (Arsenal and Manchester United, for comparison, had 13), while conceding a league-high 12.

Fast forward three months and Liverpool are TOP of the table (from New Year’s Day to present), with no one scoring more than their six goals from set-pieces in the period.

They have also conceded just two — which puts them above all but four teams.

As we know, Aaron Briggs lost his job as set-piece coach just before new year and it started to be a more collaborative effort.

Eagle-eyed fans will have spotted analyst Lewis Mahoney on the bench now. The young coach is taking on lots of the set-piece work. Liverpool do not want to put the spotlight on him but let’s give credit where it is due.

Mahoney, only 27, has previously been at Southampton, Bristol Rovers and Swansea, having achieved a first-class degree in sports performance analysis at Cardiff University.

Liverpool have rapidly improved their defending of set-pieces in 2026

Jaros is back

Goalkeeper Vitezslav Jaros has seen a positive loan spell at Ajax cut short after suffering a serious injury.

The Czech shot-stopper, 24, suffered a nasty knee injury during training last weekend and was sent to hospital, where it became clear surgery was required.

Jaros will not feature again for Ajax, for whom he had made 26 appearances. He follows young midfielder James McConnell in needing surgery after being recalled from Ajax.

The former Sturm Graz keeper has made two first-team appearances for Liverpool.

Vitezslav Jaros has played his last game for Ajax after picking up a nasty knee injury during training last week

New boys and big dogs

Just after Rio Ngumoha did his first external interview with the media on Sunday, reporters also tried to stop Joe Gomez for a chat – but the response was emphatic.

‘Why do you want to talk to me, wait for one of the big dogs, Virgil or Mo,’ he said, laughing, as we poked back, ‘Come on, Joe, you’re one of the big dogs, you’ve been here the longest of any player!’

Ngumoha would have been just six when Gomez signed for Liverpool, which highlights his service to the club. He may be injury-prone but, when he is fit, he is a manager’s dream given his versatility.

It will be interesting to see what the future holds for him this summer. Gomez had inquiries from clubs at home and abroad in the summer but was asked to stay given Liverpool were low on defensive numbers and missed out on Marc Guehi.

If he were keen to leave this year, though, they surely would not stand in his way.

How much did Premier League triumph help Reds?

The full benefit of Liverpool playing Champions League football should be made clear in the coming days with the club poised to release their latest set of financial accounts.

In the last set of accounts, which covered the financial period up until the end of May 2024, published in late February 2025, the club posted an overall loss of £57million.

Much of that was thanks to a drop of £38m in media revenue related to Liverpool only playing in the Europa League and not the Champions League in the previous season. That highlights the importance of a top-five finish again this term, which is still far from guaranteed.

Liverpool are one of the best-run clubs in the world and their finances should reflect that. A successful commercial year plus increased matchday revenue – the opening of the new Anfield Road Stand has boosted this – will also be shown in the accounts.

Klopp Kids: Where are they now?

It is normally a question you would ask 10 years down the line but two years after winning the Carabao Cup at Wembley with a severely weakened team due to injuries, that famous photo of Jurgen Klopp’s kids is interesting to look back on.

Two years after winning the Carabao Cup at Wembley with a severely weakened team due to injuries, that famous photo of Jurgen Klopp’s kids is interesting to look back on

Maybe it has not worked out as planned for some of the youngsters who failed to kick on at Liverpool – though others certainly have played a big role. 

Here is a who’s who of that picture taken two years ago yesterday…