Konate’s exit, Salah’s place and Slot’s future – Liverpool’s questions answered

We asked your burning questions about what’s happening at Anfield, and our Chief Liverpool Correspondent Ian Doyle has provided the answers.

The season is about to go straight to the end. And while it hasn’t caught on as much as supporters would have hoped so far, Arne Slot’s side still have a lot to play for between now and the end of May.

Champions League qualification may be a priority, but the Reds will be keen to get into the competition this campaign as they progress to the FA Cup, with a quarter-final tie against Manchester City come Saturday lunchtime.

We’ve been taking your questions about the current state of play at Anfield, and here are the answers…

Harry T asks: If you could sign one winger to replace Mo Salah, who would it be?

It is difficult. There is no point in trying to find a similar site as there is none. Therefore, Liverpool will assess what it takes to bring the best out of Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike while negotiating with Florian Wirtz internally.

In fact, he will be versatile and can do a job on either side and has limited speed, but still has room to grow and won’t cost much. Therefore, the pool is not that big, especially since many of their players at home and abroad have already taken such great talents.

That’s all a roundabout way of saying I don’t know which winger to sign. Well, I’m not on the recruiting team, really. It will not be easy for them.

Won It Six Times asks: Do you think Ibou Konate can end up staying now? Comments this week seem to suggest that they can.

Indeed, Ibrahima Konate may end up staying. But the fact that it has now entered April indicates that the opportunities are diminishing.

The most interesting thing for me is Real Madrid. They were adamant earlier this season that they were not interested in signing Konate, but things change in football and now, surprisingly, reports from Spain indicate that they are considering the France international.

If he heads to the World Cup without agreeing a new deal, we can assume he’s on his way if it hasn’t been announced yet. Liverpool could opt to keep Konate, and there is no doubt that the player is enjoying his time at Anfield and has recently spoken as if he plans to be there to help the new club progress. But not if the terms of the new contract do not suit his needs.

Irawo asks: Which players will be sold this summer and who are their replacements?

You could be surprised if Harvey Elliott and Kostas Tsimikas are still around next season, and Federico Chiesa will certainly consider leaving in pursuit of regular minutes. As for the other exits, many would be free transfers (Salah is sure to leave, Konate and Andy Robertson can too). After that, it will probably depend on the direction Liverpool want to go in terms of playing style and, of course, whether people decide to look for pastures new.

However, that will only happen if the right price is met by potential viewers and replacements. For me, Liverpool have been three players short all season – a big player, a defensive midfielder and a midfielder – and they will not let that happen again. They need more numbers to replace anyone who has been traded.

Mick C asks: Slot will prove to be a good manager given time to allow new players to adapt and settle.

Well, it’s more of a statement than a question. But it will be interesting to see what happens with Slot during the summer.

Unless things go badly, very badly, I doubt the next eight weeks will have much of an impact on what Liverpool decide to do. Many of this season’s problems will not be solved at that time for a long time, even if the Reds end up winning the Champions League and the FA Cup and finish in the top five.

The team is about to change a lot again, and I believe that people like Wirtz, Isak, Milos Kerkez, Jeremie Frimpong and Ekitike will improve in the future. Liverpool’s owners have shown no sign of wavering in their support of Slot. But in the end it may come down to whether they believe he has the right plan to oversee what is becoming a new Liverpool team in the post-Jurgen Klopp era.

Scouse Helen asks: When you see the number of players with long-term injuries this season, do you think too many players were moved at the start of the season?

I have always said that Liverpool should not have sold so many players in the summer even if, judging them as individual cases, you can see why everyone was allowed to leave. Perhaps the Reds paid for not being as tough and selfish as other members of the team, and that the problems in the first half of the season meant that youngsters like Trey Nyoni and Rio Ngumoha were not given as much game time as they deserved.

In fairness, Liverpool are unlucky with the wrong players – situationally – injured at the wrong time. No number of signatures can make a law for that.

Jake asks: Do you think Andy Robertson will go? Would Liverpool be in a better position if he did?

There is no doubt that Liverpool want Robertson to stay but in the end it will come down to what the player wants given that he will be second choice to Kerkez again next season. The replacement could be in the mold of what Tsimikas was when he joined six years ago – a good player with good experience who wouldn’t cost much and could step in whenever needed.

Whether a new quarterback is better than Robertson depends on who we’re talking about – if they’re better than Robertson in their prime, they’ll probably be ahead of Kerkez. In a perfect world, Liverpool would be looking for a player to give Kerkez something to think about.