Liverpool stumbled to a fifth-place finish in the 2025-26 Premier League as their faltering title defence kick-started a summer of change at Anfield.
Mohamed Salah and Andy Robertson brought the curtain down on their time at the club, while Arne Slot was dismissed as he failed to turn around a series of underwhelming results across all competitions.
Ibrahima Konate was locked in talks to sign a new contract and even admitted during the back end of the campaign that he expected to remain at Anfield.
However, things turned around quite quickly as he left the club on a free transfer and later joined Real Madrid under new manager Jose Mourinho.
The Frenchman is currently at the 2026 FIFA World Cup but has been speaking about his new club.
And it’s safe to say his comments won’t go down well with the Anfield faithful, as they lost another player for free to the La Liga giants.
Konate says Real Madrid are the biggest club in the world
Konate was a rock at the back for Liverpool since joining the club from RB Leipzig in 2021 and played more games alongside Virgil van Dijk at the heart of the backline than anyone else.
However, the 2025-26 season proved to be a difficult one on a personal level. He wasn’t at his imperious best and speculation surrounding his future continued to dominate the back pages.
Konate was heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid, but reliable reports confirmed earlier this year that the La Liga giants wouldn’t make a move for him.
His situation, though, changed after the season concluded as Florentino Perez made a series of signings to help with his presidential campaign.
Konate hasn’t officially been unveiled as a Real Madrid player yet due to his involvement at the World Cup with France. However, he described the La Liga giants as the best club in the world, which will sting the Liverpool community a little bit.
“Real Madrid is the greatest club in the world,” said the Frenchman via Fabrizio Romano.
“It is a dream to join the club, but until I put on the shirt, I will not fully believe it”.
Huge blow for Liverpool
Liverpool agreed a deal to sign Jeremy Jacquet in January, but the Frenchman was expected to lead the backline for Liverpool alongside Konate in the long run and not replace him.
Konate was also one of the candidates being considered for Liverpool’s leadership group, especially after Salah and Robertson’s departures.
For a player who took to the city and the club so well, it is a massive pity to see him leave on a free and join Real Madrid, which was also the case with a certain Trent Alexander-Arnold last summer.
Konate conducted himself with utmost dignity and class throughout his time at Anfield and we don’t really know what led to his move to Real Madrid.
That said, his departure has left a sour taste in certain corridors at Anfield, as he was seen as a key player and a leader for both the present and the future.
All in all, there’s now a massive void at the back for Andoni Iraola to fix, and Konate’s recent comments on Real Madrid only add salt to the wounds of the Liverpool faithful.
