Liverpool were defeated by Manchester City on Sunday. This meant Arne Slott’s side had lost five of six games in the Premier League, and the crisis had been turned on again.
As it stands, the eighth-placed Reds may face a tough battle to seal a top-four (or top-five depending on UEFA’s coefficients), let alone a matchup with Arsenal and a resurgent Citizens for the title they so brilliantly won last year.
It is a pale imitation of the title-winning team, and despite Josep Guardiola’s tactical dismantling of Slott and his men at the Etihad Stadium, Liverpool continue to break free from their own self-destructive tendencies.
He was very sluggish and limp against City on Sunday. Liverpool don’t have a press, and since the summer they haven’t seen the kind of stable structure they’ve seen in recent years.
But right at the epicenter of all this is Ibrahima Konate, who was targeted by the Sky Blues at the weekend, but it worked out well for them, and then some shipped three when they shipped to Liverpool.
Why Konate is such a big problem for Liverpool
Against Manchester City, Konate touched the ball 88 times, while captain Virgil van Dijk had possession of the ball 58 times (data from Sofascore).
That’s the story. Guardiola set up his team to put pressure on Liverpool’s France centre-back, but was unable to respond as he was responsible for an early penalty saved by Giorgi Mamadashvili and Erling Haaland rose to score again moments later.
This defender is in beyond abnormal form. Konate has not been able to do the basics and is now prey to opposing coaches. Sky Sports fan voice Lewis Anderson commented after the game that the 26-year-old “needs to drop like water on a hot stone” given his inconsistency this season.
But who will take his place? Despite Liverpool’s thrilling success in the summer transfer window, a concerted effort to sign Marc Gehi from Crystal Palace was delayed, leaving FSG empty-handed. The Eagles took the hard line after struggling to find a suitable replacement.
Konate is currently one of the biggest flashpoints on the team in the slot and they need to drop him. While options are certainly limited, there is one man who would be keen for a chance to step into the starting lineup in place of the strong defender in the future, if not for a while as he recovers from injury.
Teen who could end Konate’s Liverpool career
There was a lot of buzz around Anfield when sporting director Richard Hughes left for Italy and returned with Giovanni Leoni, one of the region’s most prodigious talents.
The 18-year-old joined for £26 million and was also attracting interest from the likes of Manchester United and Newcastle United.
But this fairytale move to Liverpool soon turned into a nightmare for the Italian centre-back, who ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament on his debut against Southampton in September. The severity of the injury was so severe that Slott later said he would be sidelined for about a year.
From a broader perspective, this was a damaging blow to Liverpool’s backline, which lacked depth and balance. Furthermore, due to Konate’s abysmal performance, he could be dropped aside from the poor defensive line that currently holds him in the slot.
With Konate’s contract expiring at the end of the season and interest from big clubs such as Bayern Munich and Real Madrid on the rise, Liverpool bosses are looking for a way out and have to make a decision as they continue negotiations to extend the talented player’s £70,000-a-week stay on Merseyside.
But could there be a scenario in which Konate’s departure on a free transfer actually has no negative consequences? After all, Van Dijk could stick around for a while longer and establish himself as the next big star once Leoni returns.
After all, he turned heads against the Saints before that injury.
Giovanni Leoni vs Southampton | |
|---|---|
match statistics | # |
Play time (minutes) | 81 minutes |
touch | 102 |
exact path | 88/91 (97%) |
loss of ownership | 3 times |
collect | 3 |
tackle win | 0/1 |
intercept | 3 |
clearance | 6 |
ground duel | 1/2 |
aerial duel | 3/3 |
Data via Sofascore | |
Leoni was hailed by one content creator as the ‘Rolls Royce’ of defenders who could ‘become a leader in defence’ despite his young age, but his season-ending injury on his senior debut for Liverpool can only be described as painfully unfair.
But it happened and nothing can change it. There is certainly a long road to recovery for the defender, but there remains hope on Merseyside that he will bounce back and fulfill his potential.
And data analysts are sure to be pondering Konate’s future as he nears the end of his contract, and Les Bleus may even soften their stance on the star.
Crystal Palace’s Guehi remains a top target and Leoni has shown glimpses of his quality in just under 90 minutes of football this season, proving he has what it takes to slip into the struggling senior ranks.
Van Dijk must rally Liverpool’s squad over the remainder of the campaign to ensure this brutal drop in form does not fester and linger into a wider, more pernicious problem.
But no matter how long it may seem now, this adjustment period for new players struggling to adjust to life under Slott’s watch won’t last forever.
But there’s no denying that more is needed, and if Konate can’t get his feelings together in the coming months, it’s hard to imagine Liverpool offering new and improved terms.
And given that Leoni was a duck to water in his role at Liverpool before the disaster, there’s a good chance he’ll respond with a more stable tactical setup next season, immediately justifying a potential decision to let Konate leave when his contract expires this summer.
