Two European giants join race for Liverpool star

New Liverpool signing Hugo Ekitike could make his first appearance for the Reds when they face AC Milan on Saturday. 

The Frenchman became Liverpool’s latest summer signing on Thursday – joining from German side Eintracht Frankfurt – and has now joined up with his new teammates in Hong Kong, ahead of the friendly against Italian giants Milan.

Arne Slot’s squad has been bolstered heavily since his side cruised to the Premier League title last term, with Milos Kerkez and Florian Wirtz among those to have arrived at Anfield.

Trent Alexander-Arnold is among those to have left the Merseyside outfit this summer, though, while several others have been linked with moves away from the club.

Now, it appears that two of Europe’s biggest clubs have joined the race to sign one of Liverpool’s current stars.

According to CaughtOffside, both Barcelona and Bayern Munich have entered the race to sign Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate.

Konate faces an uncertain future at Anfield (Photo: PA Images/Alamy)

The Frenchman is currently in the final year of his contract at Anfield and has already attracted interest from both Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain.

It is claimed that Real’s direct rivals Barcelona have now shown interest in the centre-back, while Bayern are also credited with an interest.

Konate is said to have rejected Liverpool’s efforts to agree a new contract with the player, with an agreement no closer to being reached.

Liverpool are reluctant to find themselves in a similar situation to this summer, where Alexander-Arnold came close to leaving the club as a free agent.

With that in mind, the report claims that the Reds have put a price tag of £40 million on the France international.

Konate joined Liverpool from German side RB Leipzig in 2021 and has since made more than 130 appearances for the club across all competitions.

He played 31 times in the Premier League last term as Slot’s side cruised to the top flight title.