Manchester City monitoring Liverpool defender’s contract impasse at Anfield | OneFootball

Manchester City are keeping tabs on Ibrahima Konate’s ongoing contract situation at Anfield ahead of the summer transfer window, as per a new report.

Konate recently won his first Premier League title in Arne Slot’s debut campaign as Liverpool manager and has forged a strong centre-back partnership with Virgin van Dijk, who was being courted by Manchester City before he joined the Reds in January 2018.

Pep Guardiola has admitted to concerns over reliance on his pack of centre-backs over the course of the season, with each of John Stones, Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji spending significant time on the sidelines.

Ake has recently returned to first-team training but remained unavailable for Saturday’s goalless draw against Southampton, with Stones enduring another difficult, injury-marred season despite a promising start to the term with crucial injury-time goals against Arsenal and Wolves.

Josko Gvardiol has arguably been Manchester City’s best and most reliable player for the 2024-25 season and Guardiola has extolled the virtues of the Croatia international several times in recent months as Gvardiol has slotted in seamlessly across left-back and centre-half.

Manchester City are set for a ruthless summer transfer window and incoming sporting director Hugo Viana is expected to not hold any punches when conducting a thorough assessment of Guardiola’s current crop of options and if they deserve a future at the Etihad Stadium.

According to the information of Graeme Bailey and James Brooke writing for Rousing The Kop, Liverpool are growing skeptical over whether might have left it too late to initiate contract talks with Ibrahima Konate as the Frenchman enters the final 12 months of his current deal at Anfield.

The Merseyside side have just seen academy graduate Trent Alexander-Arnold announce his departure after running down his contract to complete a sensational switch to Real Madrid, which has drawn criticism on the Liverpool board’s handling of contract renewals.

Manchester City are reported to be keeping a close eye on Konate’s contract impasse at Anfield but it remains unlikely at present the 2023 treble winners will circle for the 25-year-old as they remain well-stocked in the position after their mid-season business.

City signed Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis in January to address what had become a dire personnel crisis in central defence. With Gvardiol and Dias forging a strong camaraderie at the heart of the Blues backline in recent months, any new arrivals remain unlikely.