Real Madrid have confirmed the signing of Ibrahima Konate on a four-year contract, landing the France centre-back on a free transfer after he leaves Liverpool at the end of June. The 27-year-old, who made 183 appearances for the Anfield club and won the Premier League, FA Cup and two League Cups, said he was “deeply saddened that I didn’t get the chance to say goodbye” to Liverpool fans after their final Premier League game of the season against Brentford on 24 May. “At that moment, I didn’t know it would be my final time wearing this shirt in front of you,” he added.
Konate’s move follows Real Madrid’s appointment of Jose Mourinho for a second spell as manager and comes alongside two other high-profile arrivals: Bernardo Silva, 31, joins on a free transfer from Manchester City, while Spain defender Marc Cucurella has been signed from Chelsea in a deal worth £52m. The Spanish giants, who failed to win a trophy last season, are now turning their attention to Bayern Munich’s Michael Olise, with a world-record bid of £190m being prepared, according to reports.
“Real Madrid sign Konate on free, prepare £190m bid for Olise as Bayern refuse to sell.”
Olise, 24, is currently at the World Cup with France after a sensational season in which he won the Bundesliga Player of the Year award. Bayern Munich, however, have no intention of selling. Club president Herbert Hainer said: “Michael Olise is a Bayern Munich player who still has a long-term contract – and we are not a club that sells players. If Florentino Perez wants to send us an offer – which hasn’t happened yet – he can save himself the trouble.”
Bayern are instead working on a new five-year contract for Olise, who joined from Crystal Palace in July 2024 for a deal worth up to £51m. His current contract runs until 2029, but the new offer would see his salary rise from £13m per season to £22m – crucially more than what he would earn in Madrid. Former Bayern chief Karl-Heinz Rummenigge reinforced the club’s stance, recalling a 2009 decision not to sell Franck Ribery despite a world-record offer from Chelsea. “For a player like Olise, there’s no price tag that would make us flinch,” he said. “He’s a wonderful player… the way he plays football is almost magical.”
Olise registered 15 goals and 21 assists in 32 league games last season. Real Madrid face a battle to land him, with Liverpool and Paris Saint-Germain also linked. For now, Bayern have made their position clear: Olise is not for sale.