Real Madrid have confirmed the signing of Ibrahima Konaté on a free transfer after the defender’s contract expired with Premier League side Liverpool.
Konaté, 27, has agreed a deal until 2030 with the Spanish club.
He becomes Madrid’s third signing of the summer after the arrivals of Chelsea left-back Marc Cucurella and Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva.
ESPN have also previously reported that Madrid have an agreement in place to sign right-back Denzel Dumfries from Inter Milan in a deal worth €20 million.
The signings come as part of a shake-up at the Bernabéu after two consecutive seasons without a trophy, with José Mourinho also returning to the club for a second spell as coach after the departure of Álvaro Arbeloa. Madrid had sounded out a move for Konaté last year as he moved into the final year of his contract with Liverpool.
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However, despite initial optimism that he would join the club, Konaté said as recently as April that there was a “big chance” he would remain at Anfield in the end.
Negotiations, which had been ongoing since 2023, eventually broke down, though, with Liverpool confirming in May that the French defender would depart upon the expiry of his terms.
Madrid had already laid the foundations for a transfer and moved quickly once he became available.
Konaté arrives to fill the space left by David Alaba.
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He will compete for a starting berth in the middle of the backline with Antonio Rüdiger, who penned a new contract this week, Dean Huijsen, Raúl Asencio and Éder Militão.
After coming through the ranks at Sochaux, Konaté joined RB Leipzig in 2021 before signing for Liverpool for £40m in the summer of 2021.
He made 183 appearances for English club, winning the FA Cup, two Carabao Cups and the Premier League title.
Currently part of France‘s squad at the World Cup, he was an unused substitute in Tuesday’s Group I opener, a 3-1 victory over Senegal.
