Liverpool transfer round up: Bissouma race hots up, Konate transfer in doubt

Jurgen Klopp will be desperate to bring in new recruits to his Liverpool side who have fallen spectacularly short of retaining their Premier League title.

Liverpool welcome Crystal Palace to Anfield on the last day of the season with their Champions League place still in doubt.

Though the Reds currently sit in the coveted fourth spot, any slip ups to the Eagles in Roy Hodgson's final game in charge could easily see them fall back down to fifth should Leicester City beat Tottenham at the King Power Stadium.

It has been a season curtailed by severe injuries to a number of key players, with Virgil van Dijk side-lined since October while his central defensive partner Joe Gomez has been out of action since November.

Remarkably, even third choice centre-back Joel Matip sustained an injury at the turn of the year that ended his season in January.

As a result, Klopp was forced to both promote defenders from within as well as bring in external recruits on loan such as Ozan Kabak and Ben Davies.

With that in mind, here is a round of the latest Liverpool transfer news including an update on the future of Kabak and where he will potentially play his football next season.

Liverpool yet to make Kabak decision

Kabak has grown into his role as a starting central defender for Liverpool, after a shaky start that came to a head in a disaster showing against Leicester early on.

In a recent interview with the Liverpool Echo, Reds boss Jurgen Klopp issued an update on Kabak and where the club are when it comes to deciding his future.

Klopp said: “Ozan was absolutely incredible, he did a great job. Not to forget he is a young, young boy with incredible experience already.

“He has been with different clubs, moved early from Turkey to Germany and played at two big clubs in Germany in difficult situations which were obviously not his fault, we could all see that when he arrived here.

“Yes, he took a little bit of time to adapt but he did super things for us.

“I don’t know how many games out but against Leipzig [in the Champions League] he was incredible, we knew how good Leipzig could be.

“About the future, we will talk about it after that, and decide about it after the last match.

“There is obviously enough time for that, nothing else really to say about that.”

Konate deal potentially in doubt

Despite numerous reports suggesting Liverpool's deal for Ibrahima Konate was as good as done, the move is now in serious doubt.

This is due to his current side, German outfit RB Leipzig, taking issue with Liverpool's owners Fenway Sports Group preferred payment structure.

According to The Times, though Liverpool's interest in the player is concrete, Konate's £34m release clause must be paid in one full sum, rather than in instalments as Liverpool would prefer.

Should Liverpool walk away from the deal, it would only highlight the kind of financial strain the club are under, operating under a 'spend what they make' method, the club may need to sell a number of assets before a marquee signing is brought in.

Arsenal concede ground in race for Bissouma

Liverpool may have been handed a major boost in their pursuit of Brighton midfielder Yves Bissouma.

The Mali international has been the subject of interest from a number of Premier League sides, but Arsenal appeared to be leading the race, with Mikel Arteta reportedly seeing Bissouma as the ideal partner for Thomas Partey.

However, a recent update from transfer guru Fabrizio Romano will give Reds fans some fresh hope he could be plying his trade alongside the likes of Jordan Henderson and Thiago Alcantara next season.

Romano said: “I’m told he’s not the hottest name for Arsenal, you know. They are looking for something different.”

In turn, Liverpool will fancy their prospects of luring the 24-year-old away from the Amex.

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