"I'm telling you" - Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate responds after claims about him deserving red card in 1-0 win vs PSG

Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate has responded to claims that he deserved a red card during their tense 1-0 victory over Paris Saint-Germain (PSG). Both sides faced off in the Champions League Round of 16 first leg at the Parc des Princes yesterday, with the hosts failing to score.

Konate has refuted suggestions that he fouled Bradley Barcola. Appearing rather controversially to have pushed Barcola, who was one-on-one with the goalkeeper (25'), the French defender was let off the hook by referee Davide Massa. VAR also decided there had been no clear and obvious error, agreeing with the referee's decision.

Though the Parisians will feel hard done by, Konate has not backed down from his view that his push did not warrant a foul. He said in an interview with Canal Plus (via Liverpool Echo):

"There was a VAR check. If there was a push, like you said, I would have been shown a red card. I'm telling you that there wasn’t a foul. It’s true that I am very strong but I don’t apply power, I just put my arm. If I had put a lot more power into it then we could talk about it, but it was soft from me."

With PSG needing to overturn the deficit, all attention will now be on how Luis Enrique's side reacts in what will be a thrilling decider at Anfield on March 11.

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Arne Slot reacts to Liverpool's hard-fought win over PSG

Despite their 1-0 win against Paris Saint-Germain, Arne Slot admitted Liverpool were the second best team on the pitch. The game saw PSG in ascendancy for long periods but their efforts were repeatedly denied by Alisson Becker, who made nine saves.

Speaking about it, Arne Slot revealed how lucky the Reds had been (via club website):

"I think if we had a draw over here we would have already been lucky, that’s clear for everyone. I think they were the much better team today, especially in the first half, they had a lot of open chances – three or four big, big, big chances."

"In the second half they were still the better team, still had a lot of shots on target, but they were mainly from outside the box. But I knew before the game, and I saw again today, how much quality this team has and these individual players have," he added.

Harvey Elliott came on as a substitute and grabbed the only goal - an 87-minute moment of quality that delivered the crucial win at Parc des Princes. Now, Liverpool take a slim lead to the second leg at Anfield, aware that they will once again face difficult opponents in PSG.