(Video) Liverpool players share poignant moment with Ibou Konate after emotional goalscoring return

Ibrahima Konate scored one of the most poignant goals of the Premier League season so far, rounding off the scoring for Liverpool as they beat Newcastle 4-1 tonight in his first match back since the death of his father last week.

The defender had missed the Reds’ three previous games to be with his family at such a heartbreaking time, but he returned to action on Saturday night and put in a performance to make everyone immensely proud.

Arne Slot’s team were already 3-1 to the good in second-half stoppage time when the Frenchman applied the finishing touch to a penalty box scramble from a set piece, and he ran towards the corner of the Kop and the Kenny Dalglish Stand upon scoring.

Liverpool teammates join Konate in poignant scenes

As Konate took in the acclaim from an appreciative Anfield crowd, every single one of his teammates who was on the field of play at the time ran to the 26-year-old to embrace him.

The Liverpool centre-back was then seen wiping away tears as emotion understandably got the better of him, and Virgil van Dijk took a moment to wrap him in a warm supportive hug.

Konate put in a colossal performance tonight

It’s been an extremely poignant few months for everyone at LFC after the tragic death of Diogo Jota last summer, and even more so for Ibou after he lost his father in recent days.

For him to get back playing so soon after such a heartbreaking loss is an incredible testament to his character, and that he put in one of his best performance of the season in such difficult circumstances is a vast credit to him.

Even before his late goal, Konate put in a colossal performance at the back, with the Liverpool Echo‘s Ian Doyle rightly praising an ‘excellent showing’ in his post-match player ratings.

As per Sofascore, the Frenchman made a whopping 10 clearances, completed 34 of his 39 passes (87% success), won three of his five duels and made two tackles.

His goal in the closing stages was just reward for how brilliantly he played, particularly after his family tragedy, and he’ll no doubt be hugely appreciative of the support given to him by all of his teammates in the poignant scenes in the immediate aftermath of scoring.

You can view the emotional reaction to Konate’s goal below, taken from beIN SPORTS’ match coverage and shared via @zi_46 on X:

Konaté sheds tears after scoring the fourth goal.#LIVNEW
pic.twitter.com/myLDr1n4NY

— ???????????????? (@zi_46) January 31, 2026

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