Discussions between Real Madrid and France defender Ibrahima Konaté have made significant progress over the past 48 hours, and they are close to reaching a full agreement, as reported by a source to ESPN.
Konaté, now 27 years old, recently departed Liverpool on a free transfer, and appears poised to join the Spanish club this summer. While a few details remain, a four-year contract along with a signing bonus are nearly finalized.
Real Madrid’s interest in the Paris-born defender dates back several months, but initially, Konaté’s preference was to remain with Liverpool.
However, after failing to negotiate a new deal with Liverpool, the former Leipzig center-back, who joined Anfield in the summer of 2021, made the decision to part ways with the club at the end of the season.
Once it became evident that Konaté would not continue at Liverpool, Real Madrid quickly became the first club to make an inquiry. There was also interest from Bayern Munich, Barcelona, and several clubs from Saudi Arabia, according to the source.
Should this transfer materialize, Konaté will join a strong contingent of fellow French internationals in Madrid, including Kylian Mbappé, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Eduardo Camavinga, and Ferland Mendy, who are already part of the squad.
According to the source, Konaté is thrilled about the potential move to one of the world’s most prestigious clubs and hopes to finalize the transfer before departing for the World Cup with Les Bleus next week.