The 26-year-old centre-back, who had already been nursing a thigh issue, was unable to recover in time to feature for Les Bleus during the international break. Despite travelling to France’s training camp at Clairefontaine, Konaté remained on the bench during their match against Azerbaijan and has now been ruled out of the upcoming trip to Iceland.
According to reports from France, national team boss Didier Deschamps decided not to risk the defender, allowing him to return to Merseyside for further assessment.
Konaté’s latest setback comes just days after he was forced off during Liverpool’s 2–0 loss to Chelsea, limping straight down the tunnel early in the second half. Manager Arne Slot later admitted the substitution was precautionary but couldn’t hide his concern.
> “He said he felt his quad tighten up a bit,” Slot explained. “Once a player starts limping, you can’t take chances — one more sprint could make things worse.”
The Dutch coach added that he had already been considering a tactical change before Konaté signaled discomfort. “We needed someone to create from the right side, and Ryan [Gravenberch] could help us there. Hopefully, taking him off early prevents anything serious.”
As things stand, Konaté faces a race against time to prove his fitness ahead of Liverpool’s highly anticipated clash with Manchester United next weekend.
With Joel Matip still recovering and Joe Gomez often deployed in different roles, Slot will be hoping his French defender’s latest issue doesn’t extend his growing list of absentees.
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