French head coach Didier Deschamp has cleared the air on Ibrahima Konate’s injury rumours.
Konate was substituted at halftime during the first leg of the UEFA Nations League Quarter finals between France and Croatia last night.
The Liverpool man was named in the starting lineup for France pairing with Premier League rival William Saliba of Arsenal, but was replaced at half-time by Bayern Munich’s Dayot Upamecano.
The substitution triggered fear among Liverpool fans and French supporters as multiple news outlets and social media users fueled speculation that a possible injury was the cause of the substitution.
However, Didier Deschamp has dismissed the rumors of a knock or an injury to the 25-year-old, saying Konate was only substituted as he appeared to be struggling in the first half of the game.
“I know it’s tough, but I saw him struggling, not at his best, so I preferred to substitute him.” The French manager said in a post match interview.
This comes as a relief to the Liverpool fans as their club continue to hold unto their Premier League top spot, having been eliminated from every other tournament this season.
