RB Leipzig chief Oliver Mitzlaff has admitted he would have preferred if Liverpool hadn’t come calling for Ibrahima Konate this summer.
The Frenchman joined the Reds in a £36m deal at the beginning of July, with Jurgen Klopp and co moving quickly to bolster their defence after their issues in the position last season.
Their hope is that the Frenchman can establish himself as the long-term partner for Virgil van Dijk at centre back, with the likes of Joel Matip and Joe Gomez having proven unreliable in that regard.
His departure was a bitter blow for Leipzig, who had helped the Frenchman develop into a highly-rated centre-back since signing on a free transfer from Sochaux in 2017.
And Mintzlaff has admitted that had he had his own way, the Frenchman would have been staying exactly where he was this summer.
“Of course, we would have liked to keep Ibrahima Konate, Dayot Upamecano and Marcel Sabitzer, and we didn’t chase Julian Nagelsmann away to Bayern either,” he told BILD.
“We can put it all in the right perspective: Newcomers like Josko Gvardiol or Ilaix Moriba, for example, are highly talented.
“But despite their international experience, they need time to arrive and develop with us.”