Leipzig expect Konate to join Liverpool this summer
RB Leipzig expect Ibrahima Konate to join Liverpool this summer and are waiting for official confirmation that they will pay his €35m (£30.2m) release clause.
Leipzig are already looking for replacements for the French centre-back, who turned 22 on Tuesday and made 21 appearances in 2020-21.
Konate started eight Bundesliga games for Leipzig this season, with the club finishing second, 13 points behind champions Bayern Munich.
Bayern-bound Dayot Upamecano and Willi Orban played the majority of the campaign at centre-back, while Konate suffered an ankle injury in December which kept him out for two months.
Upon his return, Konate remained an unused substitute in both of Leipzig’s Champions League last-16 matches against Liverpool.
Leipzig lost that tie 4-0 on aggregate, with Liverpool winning both matches 2-0 thanks to goals from Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane in each leg.
read alsoRB Leipzig coach Nagelsmann shrugs off Liverpool rumours for Konate
Back in March, Leipzig’s sporting director Markus Krosche said the club were hopeful of keeping Konate, whose contract expires in June 2023.
“I think that this is not an option for Ibu,” Krosche said of Konate. “He has a long contract with us and he knows what we mean to him and what he means to us.