Arne Slot might have unlocked new Liverpool undroppable after harsh summer lesson

Arne Slot might have unlocked new Liverpool undroppable after harsh summer lesson

Ibrahima Konate fell out of favour under Jurgen Klopp but now looks to be back to his best under Slot

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot. (Image: Photo by Nikki Dyer - LFC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images )

It was a moment 1,107 days in the making. As Ibrahima Konate slid towards the travelling Kop at Molineux on Saturday afternoon, his relief at having finally notched his first Premier League goal was palpable.

More than three years on from his debut in the competition, the Frenchman was at last off the mark for Liverpool in the top flight, having scored a thumping header - his first in two-and-a-half years - less than two weeks previously against AC Milan in the Champions League. When you factor in that he also registered an assist in the Reds' 3-0 win over Bournemouth last month, it seems Konate is currently in the midst of an offensive purple patch.

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But it is the defensive side of the centre-back's game that has most caught the eye since Arne Slot brought him off the bench for the second half of Liverpool's Premier League opener against Ipswich Town. That Konate started the match as a substitute was reflective of his position in the Reds' defensive pecking order on the eve of the new season.

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Last term, a cocktail of injuries and poor individual form saw the 25-year-old lose his place in the starting lineup to the impressive Jarell Quansah as Liverpool attempted to stay hot on the heels of Manchester City and Arsenal in the title race. Konate started just two of Jurgen Klopp's eight final league games as Reds boss, both of which ended in defeat, to Crystal Palace and Everton respectively.

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It was little surprise, then, that the defender remained an unused substitute at this summer's European Championship as France reached the semi-finals, with Arsenal's William Saliba displacing him in Didier Deschamps' first choice XI. "I came with a lot of expectations, that's part of football," Konate told reporters back in June when quizzed on his international omission.

"I knew what my place was before the first match. It's frustrating but I know my role on and off the field. A 100% 'Ibou' would never have sat on the bench. I didn't play for a month and a half. But I prepared, and I almost passed out more than once. The preparation was very short. It's part of football. It was a good lesson for me."

On recent evidence, it seems it was a lesson well learnt for the Frenchman, who is now irrefutably Slot's preferred centre-back partner for Virgil van Dijk, despite Quansah having been afforded a starting berth against Ipswich. The young defender had the advantage of a full pre-season under his new head coach, with Konate joining up with the squad after his post-Euros break but, after being hooked at half-time at Portman Road, the 21-year-old now finds himself behind Liverpool's No.5 in the defensive hierarchy.

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While Slot may have raised a few eyebrows with his rather blunt appraisal of Quansah's display against Kieran McKenna's side, and though the England youth international has barely put a foot wrong since his first-team debut in August 2023, the Reds boss has so far been vindicated for his decision to stick by Konate.

The defender's statistics are amongst the best in the Premier League this term, with his success in aerial duels even outstripping that of Van Dijk and his tackle success rate of 75% far superior to the numbers recorded by celebrated Arsenal duo Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes.

While Luis Diaz and Ryan Gravenberch have earned most of the headlines for their seismic improvement under Slot, Konate is another player who very much seems to be benefitting from the attentions of the Dutchman. Still, his role in Wolverhampton Wanderers' goal at Molineux on Saturday evening points to a player who is still occasionally capable of the ridiculous as well as the sublime and it is clear there is still work to do on the training pitch before he can truly be considered the finished article.

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"We need everyone to be at their best," Van Dijk said when asked about the Frenchman following Liverpool's 2-1 win in the West Midlands. "Ibou is an amazing, fantastic player who can still be better. He is defensively solid and was a bit unlucky with the goal that we conceded but the qualities he has, he is outstanding.

"He is learning and he is growing, getting better and looking after himself much better, to be ready every three days — and also he has a young player behind him in Jarell - who is also a good one, so they keep pushing each other."

Indeed, it seems that level of competition has helped Konate raise his game. If the defender heeds his captain's advice and, perhaps more crucially, stays fit, he could be set for his most successful season in a Liverpool shirt.

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