During this difficult period Konate was also carrying the burden of knowing his father was seriously ill.
“I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know whether I should go home and stop playing, because the team needed me too,” he added.
“I didn’t know who to talk to about it, so I kept it all to myself. And this is the advice I’d give to everyone: when you’re feeling down or something’s going on, you need to talk to those around you.
“It can help you and do you good. I didn’t talk about it and kept it to myself.
“The doctors then told us he didn’t have long to live, but we didn’t know it would happen so quickly.”
Konate returned early from compassionate leave to help Liverpool avert an injury crisis at the end of January but the centre-back conceded that things were never quite right.
He made 51 appearances across the 2025-26 campaign, 49 as a starter, but was unable to consistently produce the best form he had displayed across his previous four seasons on Merseyside as Liverpool finished fifth in the Premier League.
Konate, who has been capped 27 times by France, is part of Didier Deschamps’ 26-man squad for the World Cup, with Les Bleus among the favourites.
“There was never a moment when I felt like I was on the mend,” he added.
“All of these tragic events happened so quickly and as soon as I felt like I was getting my head above water, something else happened.
“I had the support of all these fans, who are exceptional at Liverpool, my team-mates and especially my family but I also had to learn how to get back on my feet on my own because the team needed me more than ever and I know that my father would have wanted me to get back.”
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this story, information and support can be found at the BBC’s Action Line.
