31 May 2026 17:33:51
Konate officially gone on a free now, I see.
Weekend keeps on getting better n better!
31 May 2026 18:02:42
Awful last season but under a different coach he could've regained his past form, an international player leaving on a free.
I maybe don't understand what's happening behind the scenes but seems a loss to me.
{Ed001's Note - his past form was poor as well.}
31 May 2026 18:10:06
Agree, Clee
The amount of money we've let walk out of the door is criminal.
31 May 2026 18:18:14
How do you propose we keep any player who doesn't agree to a contract extension?
Open to ideas.....
31 May 2026 18:27:49
Sell him a year before for a fee.
31 May 2026 18:28:32
Deal with it one way or another before it gets to the final year of a contract.
Buy players who we need - to allow us to sit players on the bench or leave out of the squad altogether until they sign, or transfer out.
31 May 2026 18:34:20
Thank God, an awful player.
31 May 2026 18:36:55
If he doesn't agree to a contract, then surely you sell him for whatever you can get a year or 2 before.
31 May 2026 18:43:16
Not if he doesn't want to leave.
31 May 2026 18:58:55
Yes, Rome,
Follow up question to Clee, SirBob and Livered:
How do you propose we sell a player who doesn't want to leave?
Open to all ideas.
31 May 2026 19:02:17
Problem is, these players want to go to the iconic clubs. Clubs, though, who don't always want to commit to wages and a transfer fee. So you can say sell them with a year left, but they'll just refuse to go. Ibou, I would bet, will end up at a top club, because they are getting him for nowt.
But I betcha the same team wouldn't have been interested last year when they'd have had to give us 30 or 40m. Players have no problem at all pissing all over their current club. Trent should have thought us all that.
31 May 2026 19:03:52
Lawrenson, Hansen, Virgil, Hyppia, Yates, Smith, Hughes. That's the level we need to be looking at. Maybe one day we add the names Leoni and Jaquet. We will never be adding Konate.
31 May 2026 19:04:18
No international player is going to risk sitting on their backside out of the team.
You either:
A) sign
B) train and don't play
C) transfer out.
31 May 2026 19:04:20
I expect if he wasn't being played and knew he'd miss out on a World Cup call out he'd want to leave. However, we didn't really have the cover to do that, so the point is moot. He was an important part of our league win, so maybe worth it. Sadly this season has been a calamity and we can do better. Bye, Ibouuuuuu.
31 May 2026 19:17:35
I don't have the answers, Ron, but I also don't recall too many top teams letting first team international players leave on a free for the second season running.
31 May 2026 19:21:04
That's not a realistic ultimatum, Sir Bob.
Players have the power, clubs just have to suck it up, and some clubs (Madrid) let player's representatives know that they're interested in signing them when their contract expires.
Look at Isak, forced a move even though Newcastle did not want to sell. Players have the power.
31 May 2026 19:22:38
Skrtl; Babb; Wright; Paletta; Piechnik; Coates; Davies; Ilori; Kyrigiakos; Kabak; Whitbread; Traore; Sakho..... Need I go on.
We can look all day at players of high calibre. If they don't want to come to us (there are some very entitled 'fans' on here) or we can't pay their fee/wages. What do we, or any other club, do?
31 May 2026 19:59:50
Ron, you can't force a player to leave a year before their contract ends. I agree.
However, if an offer had been made for Konate last summer (and I'm not saying that was the case) they should have weighed up the situation (that he is very replaceable) and taken the money.
31 May 2026 19:48:44
Edd001 would it be possible to write into player contract a 1 year option only we can enforce? If we note see or hear they intend to do the rundown option we should be able to implement the option? Say 2 full transfer window before the contract ends. That way we may at least have leverage. stops the stalling and I'm sure players joining the club will be happy to get a possible extra year
I have no clue if it's possible but would at the very least give us some security. Imagin if brain fart was told last week. Your staying mate oh yes by the way. Your only getting what your on now. Enjoy your summer.
{Ed001's Note - you can have an option yes, but you have to get the player and his agent to accept it.}
31 May 2026 20:50:33
Chrisymate, clubs can have a one year option that they alone can trigger (the player and agent would have had to agree to it in the original contract) however clubs cannot activate extension clauses just to profit. So for example, if Liverpool had an option in Konate's contract and triggered it, only to sell him in a few weeks time during the summer window, The fee generated would almost all go to Konate.
There'd be no benefit to it for Liverpool. (Was told this by the late ed002, a couple of years ago)