Arne Slot has finally FOUND his Virgil van Dijk REPLACEMENT

Whether it’s at the end of this season or beyond, Liverpool will soon have to figure out a long-term replacement for Virgil van Dijk.

The club captain has been a colossus since joining from Southampton for £75 million back in 2018, winning every major honour along the way along with a clutch of individual awards.

The fact of the matter is however that the Dutch international is out of contract in summer 2025 and thus far there has been no breakthrough in talks over a new deal.

Van Dijk is among the club’s top earners, on a reported £220,000 per week, and although he remains at the peak of his powers, he will turn 34 next summer.

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Liverpool linked with central defenders

There are no signs that Van Dijk is slowing down but he cannot go on forever and therefore alternatives need to be sourced.

Links with centre backs have been abundant for the past few transfer windows with the likes of Goncalo Inacio, Ousmane Diomande, Piero Hincapie and Willian Pacho all associated with inward transfers to Anfield.

However the Reds opted to go into the new season under Arne Slot with pretty much the same central defenders they had last term under Jurgen Klopp, minus Joel Matip, whose contract expired and who subsequently retired.

Quansah kicking his heels

Van Dijk continues to be the defensive leader while Jarell Quansah started the season as Slot’s preferred centre-back partner for the former Celtic stalwart. Joe Gomez, meanwhile stayed at the club despite transfer links to Newcastle and Aston Villa.

Quansah’s grip on a first-team shirt lasted all of 45 minutes however with Slot hauling off the England under-21 international during the opening game of the season against Ipswich Town. Since then he has been waiting to get back in but the form of one man in particular means Quansah has been kicking his heels on the bench.

Konate steps up

Ibrahima Konate signed for Liverpool from RB Leipzig back in 2021 for around £35m but struggled in the first few years of his Reds career.

There were issues with form as well as fitness with the Frenchman losing his place to Quansah towards the end of last season. And having missed out on France’s preferred XI for the European Championship, the 25-year-old began this season in a mini career crisis.

But he has knuckled down, improved his form and become along with Van Dijk one of the best central defenders in Europe this season.

Can Konate replace Van Dijk?

Liverpool’s defensive record is formidable and that is down in no small part to Konate’s aerial dominance, bravery and capability with the ball at his feet.

On Tuesday night he locked down Victor Boniface, the Bayer Leverkusen striker who to this point of the season had been one of Europe’s most feared marksmen. He got no change out of Konate, who bounced back from a serious-looking injury at the weekend to recover his place in the lineup for the Champions League clash.

Konate has been trusted as a defensive leader this term and depending on the outcome of the Van Dijk negotiations he could soon become Liverpool’s No.1 pick at centre-back.

Finally, after a sequence of setbacks and false dawns, Konate is proving to be the defender Liverpool thought they were buying three years ago.

It’s taken some time but Arne Slot - and sporting director Richard Hughes - can be assured that the future of the club’s defence is safe whether Van Dijk is retained or not.

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