Liverpool have included a massive bonus in Ibrahima Konate’s contract which rewards him for making a certain number of appearances for the club.
The towering centre-back completed a move to Liverpool last week and, with the five-year cost of his contract factored in, Konate cost them a combined total of £58.2million but is expected to live up to the hype.
His display for France against Holland in the U21 European Championship on Monday was dominant but his attacking teammates failed to take their chances and Les Bleus were caught out on the counter-attack in the dying moments of the game, crashing out of the competition.
For Liverpool, this is good news as it means that Konate faces decreased risk of getting injured and can now begin his summer vacation as he gets ready for his first pre-season for two years.
Anfield Central has been informed that Liverpool included a bonus clause in the player’s contract that rewards him for making 30+ Premier League starts which would require him to remain fit for the vast majority of the campaign.
There are no concerns over his injury history despite the muscle fibre tear he suffered in October 2019 but Liverpool want to reward the defender for sustained presence in the Liverpool side.
The clause, which our source claims is worth approximately one month’s wages which equates roughly to £280,000, can only be triggered twice during his five-year contract and is only valid for the first three years of his deal.
Appearances in the Champions League, FA Cup and Carabao Cup will not contribute to the triggering the payout. His contract also includes the usual player bonuses for trophies, league finish etc.
Liverpool feel as though they have signed a player that is headed for the very pinnacle of world football if he can work on the weaknesses in his game, with pass selection and a tendency to delay decision making two of the areas he is tasked with working on.
When sporting director Michael Edwards was negotiating with RB Leipzig, we learned that the Bundesliga side’s coaching staff believe that the defender is destined to be the best centre-half in the world one day.
New RBL manager Jesse Marsche is understood to be ‘broken-hearted’ that he has missed out on working with Konate.