Ibrahima Konaté admits he is still struggling to come to terms with the death of his Liverpool teammate, the "Reds".
Ibrahima Konaté, the French international defender preparing to leave Liverpool, confessed he has not yet accepted the passing of forward Diogo Jota, his teammate. He also endured the loss of his beloved father around the same time, which almost made him quit football altogether.
Konaté said, “Even today, I really can't accept it. His locker is still there in the dressing room. Every day at training, he is still with us.”
“When I heard the news about Jota, I was in Los Angeles. I was deeply saddened and couldn’t believe what I heard. I couldn’t focus on anything else. Then my father fell ill and passed away. I chose to keep everything to myself because I didn’t know who to talk to, and I didn’t know if I should stop playing football.”
“But you have to return to playing football because there is no other choice. We are employees of the club that pays us every month, so we have responsibilities.”
“We have no choice but to get back on the field and play for him, for his family, and for ourselves. You can never forget it, but you have to learn to live with it.”