Liverpool are looking to get their summer transfer window kickstarted with the signing of Ibrahima Konate, but there could still be one final twist before he potentially joins. Jurgen Klopp rarely speaks publicly about transfer targets but he did break his usual protocol midway through this past season during the January window.
He is renowned as a good passer of the ball while also matching the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip in other key defensive areas.
Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano claims that personal terms with Liverpool have already been 'agreed' and Konate will join the Merseyside club 'soon'.
But there may well be some trepidation from Liverpool's side in meeting the £34m release clause.
While Konate's talent and potential are clear to see, so is his injury record at such a young age.
Liverpool were extremely unfortunate with their bait of injuries this season in defence, particularly with Van Dijk who had barely missed a single minute of action since his move from Southampton in January 2019.
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Liverpool have had torrid luck with injuries in defence (Image: GETTY)
Gomez and Matip though have had a number of injury issues over the years with Klopp tinkering between the pair depending on who is available and fit.
Konate will come in and give him that much-needed fourth option, with Nat Phillips potentially staying on as well.
But the Leipzig defender has also missed his fair share of action due to injury issues.
According to transfermarkt, Konate has been unavailable for 393 days over the past two seasons.
Virgil van Dijk returning will be huge for Liverpool (Image: GETTY)
He's also started just 23 games in that same time span, giving Liverpool little data to go on when looking at his relative form and growth.
Every big-money transfer can be seen as a gamble, but after Liverpool's record with injuries over the past season, they will understandably be cautious on who they target.
Still, Konate is expected to be a star of the future and has all the right attributes to be a success under Klopp.
And if he can stay injury-free next season, the Frenchman may become Liverpool's most important signing of the summer.