Liverpool ready to ‘move quickly’ to sign Bayern Munich star as Real Madrid ignite triple move

Liverpool are ready to enter serious discussions for Dayot Upamecano in the new year if Ibrahima Konate continues to delay the signing of a new deal at Anfield, sources have revealed.

French defender Konate is out of contract at Anfield in June, with the five-year arrangement he signed when first arriving from RB Leipzig in 2021 due to expire and with Liverpool no closer to agreeing an extension. And while talks have been ongoing over a new contract for the best part of 12 months now, the fact that it still remains unsigned means the Premier League champions are starting to think about contingency plans.

The main target for Liverpool very much remains Marc Guehi. The Reds came within a whisker of signing the Crystal Palace star on transfer deadline day and, although the Eagles pulled the plug on that move, Arne Slot and Co. remain very interested in picking up the 27-times capped England next summer, when his contract at Selhurst Park expires.

However, a move to Anfield for Guehi is far from certain and, with competition starting to significantly heat up, Bayern Munich have been strongly linked with the England star and having already held ‘initial discussions’ with the player’s representative.

Bayern themselves are keeping an eye on the Palace star, in case their own defensive colossus, Upamecano, also leaves as a free agent, with his deal also due to expire at the season’s end.

But the triple transfer merry-go-round could be kicked off by Konate, who remains a prime target for Real Madrid.

And should Konate move to the Bernabeu, Liverpool will look to launch a move for Upamecano and with Bayern Munich, in turn, then pushing harder for Guehi.

The situation is further complicated by Real also having an interest in Upamecano as an alternative to Konate…

IN-DEPTH 🔴 Who is Konate’s agent and how much does he earn at Anfield compared to Liverpool teammates?

Liverpool ready to make Upamecano move – sources

Diving into the saga and explaining the complexities of the possible triple transfer, Dean Jones reckons the Reds would need to move quickly for France defender Upamecano, owing to the strong interest in his services.

“If there is no agreement on a Bayern deal by the new year, then Liverpool are expected to more formally show their interest in the player,” Jones told TEAMtalk. “They would need to move quickly because they are not the only club with eyes on him, Real Madrid also have half an eye on him at the moment.

“These three clubs are very much looking to sort out a similar problem for next season so the same names keep circulating between them.

“A lot of the situation will be led by Liverpool’s own need for a new centre-back, with no new deal for Konate sorted yet.

“It remains the case that Madrid very much want him as part of their project that sees them targeting top players as their contracts wind down.

“Madrid seem convinced that Konate is interested – the stories surrounding them are not just speculation.

“I’m not sure how much Liverpool fans would care about Konate leaving if they can land one of their top targets.”

Adding more weight to the argument, he earlier revealed: “Liverpool are definitely keen on the potential of signing Upamecano and it’s probably getting to the point that he is a prime target outside of Guehi.

“But this is all pretty tangled up, given that Guehi is wanted by Bayern – and the Germans are also trying to tie Upamecano to a new contract.

“At the moment, there is no progress on Upamecano committing, and as a result of that, Bayern are having to seriously consider other players that could come in to replace him.

“Nottingham Forest’s Murillo is being mentioned, but he is a very different proposition to Guehi, seeing as Guehi would be on a free and Murillo would be very expensive.

“But these are the sorts of details that are currently having to be addressed at Bayern and that Liverpool are having to be attentive to.

“Liverpool will have to wait for now, because Bayern are looking to address the Upamecano situation imminently and they do want to keep him.

“The outcome of that scenario will have big implications all round.”

On whether Upamecano will sign a new deal at Bayern, BILD recently revealed that the defender had made clear his financial demands, though having revealed that the Bundesliga side were still nowhere near an agreement.

Latest Liverpool news: Salah successor option panned; new deal for Slot

‘Succession planning’ seems the buzz phrase at Anfield right now with Upamecano and Guehi conceivably seen as long-term replacements for not just Konate, but also Virgil van Dijk, who will be almost 36 by the time his latest Anfield deal expires.

It’s not just Van Dijk that Liverpool are planning for life after, though, with Mo Salah another club legend who will one day soon need replacing.

One name frequently talked about is Michael Olise, but the Bayern Munich star was not at his best for France this week to justify suggestions that he could step into Salah’s shoes at Anfield, while the French media also gave a brutal assessment of Hugo Ekitike in the win against Azerbaijan.

In other news, the Netherlands’ 4-0 mauling of Malta on Thursday night – in which four Liverpool players started – has given Slot two ideas on changes to make.

Elsewhere, Slot’s agent is working on agreeing a new Liverpool contract for her client, and amid obvious on-pitch concerns at Anfield right now, TEAMtalk has explored whether the Dutchman is deserving of one.

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