Konate: I am at Liverpool for the long term 

Ibrahima Konate says that he feels right at home at Liverpool and there is no better place for his game to grow further.

The 23 year-old central defender may have only played just over 40 games for the Reds and is still honing his game to some extent.

Like quite a few Liverpool players in recent times, Konate has had to overcome his share of injuries but when fit, he has established a very promising partnership with Virgil Van Dijk.

2022 was a hallmark year for Konate, starting the Champions League final in the city where he was born, and then winning his first cap for the senior French national team and was part of their World Cup squad where he made five appearances.

Naturally, the youngster has personal goals he wants to achieve and feels that there is no better place to achieve them than where he is as at the moment as the Echo (per Eurosport France) reported.

“When you play for Liverpool, the question honestly is, ‘Where can I go next? 

"And to last at this club, you have to perform. My goal is to be part of the team in the short and long-term, and of course to win all titles.

“We'll admit it: this season is more complicated for all of us, for the whole club. Nobody is better placed to talk about the reasons than the coach.

"We were unlucky to have a lot of injured players like me at the beginning of the season, maybe we were short of manpower, the workload was intense and it became complicated. But the season is not over."

When it comes to playing with Van Dijk, Konate believes the big Dutchman still has no peer in the game, bristling at comparisons to his former RB Leipzig teammate and countryman Dayot Upamecano.

“What kind of question is that?" "You can't compare the two. With Upamecano, we are in the same category even if he is a very high competitor.

“But Van Dijk, I put him on a different planet. We're still a long way from achieving what he did. Although we will get there one day, I have no doubt.

Konate then touched on what the iconic defender had taught him in all facets of the craft.

“What have I learned from playing with Van Dijk? Leadership, he has such an ease in defending on certain players.

"He has his own technique, it's incredible. His determination, his drive. He has an aura on the pitch, you always feel it. It's an exceptional chance to play with him. But I also have to look at my career and not look at him as a fan all the time."