It is almost certain that Barcelona will sign a new central defender next summer, given that they only have four senior options following the departure of Inigo Martinez to Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr. There are no plans for a replacement to be signed now because of the club’s financial woes, which would also mean that the free agent market will surely be looked at again.
A number of centre-backs have been linked with Barcelona in recent weeks, but one of the more surprising names has been Ibrahima Konate. The Liverpool defender is into the final 12 months of his contract at Anfield, and at this stage, he has shown no signs of wanting to sign a renewal – which would mean that he’d be available for free next summer.
Real Madrid are very interested in Konate, and they are considering a move to sign him as a free agent – although they could bring forward these plans to this summer. However, Barcelona are also prepared to enter the race.
As reported by Sempre Barca, Barcelona are very much interested in signing Konate, and they have already held preliminary talks with the player’s inner circle. It has also been revealed that the Liverpool man would welcome a move to the Spotify Camp Nou, where he would compete for a regular starter spot alongside the likes of Pau Cubarsi and Ronald Araujo.
Konate would undoubtedly be a top signing for Barcelona – and especially in the circumstances. To bring in a starting-quality central defender on a free is exactly the sort of business that the Catalans need to be doing during this treacherous period, although it will be very difficult to beat Real Madrid to his signature – providing that he does not renew with Liverpool before next summer.