Real Madrid's summer 2026 transfer strategy won't be able to come into shape fully until Jose Mourinho is confirmed as the new manager, and that may take a little bit of extra time due to Enrique Riquelme officially challenging Florentino Perez as the new president. And while nobody thinks Riquelme will win the election with his plans to bring in a world class coach of his own, his fight for the presidency could delay Mourinho's return to the Santiago Bernabeu.
All the while, Perez and Mourinho are drafting up their lists of transfer targets, which include some huge names like Alessandro Bastoni, Joao Neves, Vitinha, Rodri, Enzo Fernandez, Nico Schlotterbeck, and other massive names to upgrade the defense and midfield alongside potential high profile academy buy backs like Victor Munoz and Como duo Nico Paz and Jacobo Ramon.
But before the Mourinho rumors and even the other ones, the most frequently linked name to Real Madrid was that of French center back Ibrahima Konate, who was in talks to sign a new deal with Liverpool but never did.
Real Madrid need more defenders
An impending free agent, the Frenchman is now going to officially be a free agent this summer. After failing to agree to terms with Liverpool despite of months of on and off again negotiations during a difficult season for both the player and the club, Konate, per Sky Sports News in England and other major outlets in the country, will officially test the free agent waters this season.
The links to Real Madrid have cooled for Ibrahima Konate, but they have also never fully gone away. And though close friends Eduardo Camavinga and Aurelien Tchouameni are not untouchable, those two midfielders, as well as left back Ferland Mendy and striker Kylian Mbappe, form a strong quartet of French national team players (past and current) who could help bring Konate to the Bernabeu.
Over the last 10 years, Konate has been one of the best center backs in European football and is a Premier League winner, twice, with Liverpool and a former Champions League Finalist against Real Madrid. But despite his qualities, he is coming off the worst season of his career, which is a large reason why both Real cooled their initially high transfer interest in him - and possibly why Liverpool are willing to let him go.
Konate does not carry the same cachet as last summer's big signing from Liverpool, new Real Madrid starting right back Trent Alexander-Arnold, but especially after a tough season, he may not carry the same wages. And if Real Madrid want to blow a ton of money to get Alessandro Bastoni from Inter Milan, they may need to dip back into free agency for their other big center back for Mou.
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