Ibrahima Konate, Liverpool defender, is eager for his France teammate Khephren Thuram to join him at Anfield. Jurgen Klopp is desperate to bring in at least two midfielders this summer, and has already signed Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton in a deal worth an initial £35million. The Reds have also identified the 22-year-old Nice star Thuram, the son of France legend Lilian, as a top target. Nice are reluctant to sell one of their prized assets with recent reports in France suggesting it would take an offer of £52million to bring them to the negotiating table.
Konate has made no secret of his desire for Thuram to join him on Merseyside, describing him as a ‘little brother’ who he is ready to ‘take under his wing’. He told RMC Sport: ‘I would be very happy for him [Thuram] to come to Liverpool and I would take him under my wing and I would do everything for him to progress and become the player he wants to become. Khephren is like my little brother, he’s someone I saw growing up. I was with his big brother [fellow France international Marcus] in the training centre, but I saw him grow. I saw him perform and progress at a level… It was incredible. Even when he came to the France team for his first selection. I saw him at the training and I was really surprised by his size and his technical ease.’
Konate made the move from RB Leipzig to Liverpool at the same age Thuram is now and has urged the midfielder to ignore those telling him it is too soon to make the move. He said: ‘When I was in Leipzig and I signed for Liverpool, many people said that it was too early, that it was not the right choice. In the end, I proved all these people wrong so you shouldn’t listen to people. If Khephren has the opportunity to come to a club like Liverpool, I think he will be surprised the enthusiasm that will come behind him. It’s up to him to work. He’s still very young but he has an incredible margin for improvement so I’m confident.’