Gomez says Liverpool have an ‘unbelievable’ 22-year-old in the ranks, only played twice

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Ibrahima Konate is certainly looking like a shrewd acquisition by Liverpool.

The 22-year-old defender is the only player who Liverpool signed during the summer transfer window, after joining for £36 million from Red Bull Leipzig.

The Reds’ lack of spending didn’t go down well among fans but, having said that, at least what they did spend went toward a quality player.

Konate had another stormer for Jurgen Klopp on Tuesday as the Premier League giants hammered Norwich City at Carrow Road to move into the fourth round of the EFL Cup.

This was only the French defender’s second game, having only made his debut in the 3-0 win over Crystal Palace last weekend.

He partnered Joe Gomez in central defence against the Canaries and the 24-year-old said via The Echo that he was very impressed by the ‘unbelievable’ star.

He said: “Ibou is a top guy and an unbelievable player. Look at his attributes, you can see how good he is. When I was younger I had Virg, but Ibou is already experienced, he’s already a top player, he’s played in the Champions League.”

Depth

This level of competition for centre-back places at Liverpool is frightening and quite a contrast to last season, when they signed Ben Davies from the Championship and spent most of the campaign using Fabinho in an unfamiliar defensive role.

Even people like Nat Phillips, who played a huge role in helping Klopp’s side to Champions League qualification last term, can’t get a look-in these days and seems to be the German manager’s fifth-choice option.

Konate has really added another layer of depth to this position and considering what happened last season, with Gomez and Virgil van Dijk missing most of the campaign, it’s great to see.