European giants 'closely monitoring' Ibrahima Konate - with Liverpool 'putting pressure on the defender' to decide his future as his contract continues to run down

Bayern Munich are watching Ibrahima Konate's contract situation closely, with Liverpool putting pressure on the French defender to make a decision on his future, according to a report.

Konate's deal runs out at the end of the season, with there currently no sign of whether he will be extending his stay at Anfield. Should he choose not to, the Reds may look to offload him in January to avoid losing him for free. 

'Bayern will be watching very closely how the decision is made,' Christian Falk of BILD has said. 'Liverpool are putting on the pressure - they definitely want to sell him if he doesn't sign a new contract soon.

'They already have one on the table. They absolutely don't want to lose a player on a free transfer. They would then immediately invest the money in Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace.'

The situation with Bayern Munich, according to the report, surrounds the future of Dayot Upamecano, who too is out of contract at the end of the season and yet to sign a new deal.

Should he stay in Munich, it is reported that Bayern will be happy with their options, but otherwise may move for Konate or Guehi. Real Madrid are also looking at all three defenders.

Konate looked to have turned a corner recently, helping Arne Slot's men keep clean sheets with Aston Villa and Real Madrid, and he rose to the challenge of stifling Kylian Mbappe in the Champions League.

Since then, though, he has struggled against Manchester City and Nottingham Forest. The Frenchman has endured a drop in standards overall this season and has been error-prone against opponents such as Bournemouth, Newcastle, and Galatasaray.

'I'd like him to stay but if he doesn't stay, Liverpool will sign someone else. Liverpool won't fall apart if Konate leaves,' former Reds defender Jamie Carragher recently told Daily Mail Sport.

'He's not Virgil van Dijk. He's a good centre back who you hope will sign, but if he doesn't want to sign, Liverpool will be absolutely fine.

'He's a very good centre-back, he's a title winner at Liverpool, he's played in the Champions League final against Real Madrid. He's obviously a quality centre back.

'It's not poor management [if he goes for free]. You can't physically make somebody sign a contract. Then it's your decision, do you keep him to the length of his contract or do you sell him?'

Konate has played 148 times for Liverpool since joining for £35million from RB Leipzig in 2021, and 16 times this season.