Liverpool star Ibrahima Konate teases William Saliba with Arsenal trophy jibe

Liverpool star Ibrahima Konate was caught teasing Arsenal's William Saliba in a light-hearted exchange about the Premier League title race. Arsenal are currently top of the table, one point ahead of reigning champions Liverpool, who've suffered back-to-back defeats to surrender their grip on first place.

But the battle is on hold during the international break. Konate and Saliba both play for France, so they've had to put their clubs' rivalry aside for a short period.

But that didn't stop the Liverpool centre-back from pulling Saliba's leg in a moment filmed by the French national team's social media staff. It started when Konate was asked by a fan to sign a photo of him holding the Premier League trophy from back in May of this year.

"Hey Wilo, it's you, right?" Konate joked. "No, no, it's you for this year," Saliba replied.

Konate responded by saying: "It's for you this year," to which the Arsenal defender quipped: "No, it's Liverpool again! We have to put pressure on them."

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Saliba has been talking about Konate in the media this week, as the latter suffered an injury during Liverpool's 2-1 loss to Chelsea on Saturday. "He hasn't been training because he has some minor injuries," Saliba told a press conference. "I hope he'll be back soon but I don't know any more."

Earlier this week, France manager Didier Deschamps suggested that Konate's issue was merely fatigue, saying: "There are still injuries. I don't have any additional information. We'll have an update when the players arrive.

"The observation is that for the vast majority, they arrive tired. They arrive from one week to three matches. I will have to spread out the playing time more than in September. They are all fit to play."

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Konate and Saliba have the shared goal of winning the 2026 World Cup, and it could be a summer of change for one of them. While Saliba is tied down at Arsenal for another five years after recently signing an extension, Konate has entered the final year of his contract with Liverpool and is on course to leave on a free transfer amid interest from Real Madrid.

"I feel proud of myself because I first signed in 2019, and now in 2025, I'm still here to extend my contract," he said. "I'm so happy. I feel at home. We have a good team, we have a good squad, we have good staff. The coach is perfect for me, so it's the best place to be.

"I enjoy every day when I have the chance to wear this shirt. I try to give everything, and now I'll give even more to this club and to the fans. The boss is one of the best coaches in the world. He has helped me a lot, him and his staff, so I'm so happy to have them as a coach.

"I'm 24 now, and I think I haven't reached my peak. I have a lot of things to improve, a lot of things to give to this team, and I know that the coach and the staff will help me to become the best, or one of the best, defenders in the world and win trophies."

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