Not more than a few months back, Ibrahima Konate’s move to Real Madrid seemed like a done deal. The player’s contract at Liverpool was set to expire next summer, and he was keen on moving to Santiago Bernabeu.

Real Madrid, for their part, had favoured Konate due to his status as a free agent, as the club were looking for cost-effective options in the market.

However, the transfer saga eventually broke down because of one man: Juni Calafat.

Calafat’s role in Konate pursuit

A recent report from Defensa Central has highlighted the role Calafat played in convincing Real Madrid to abandon the pursuit of Ibrahima Konaté.

As Real Madrid’s chief scout, Calafat has a lot of weight inside the Real Madrid camp, having identified and signed talents such as Federico Valverde, Raphael Varane and Vinicius Jr. in the past.

In the case of Konate, however, Calafat issued a final report in which he highlighted the defender’s many shortcomings.

While Calafat did point out Konate’s physical prowess, he also mentioned that the Frenchman lacks focus at times and is not consistent enough. He further pointed out that he is prone to making ‘serious errors’.

Through his final report, Calafat convinced Real Madrid, including president Florentino Perez, to drop the pursuit of Konate.

Unfortunately for Real Madrid, though, the club have also lost out in the race to sign other defensive targets such as Marc Guehi and Dayot Upamecano despite weeks of negotiations.

As a result, Real Madrid have now adopted a stricter transfer policy, believing that some free agents are using the club to market themselves in a better way.