second season, Konaté became an integral part of the Chamois Niortais first-team thanks to his ability to play in a number of positions, his pace, and his accurate corner kicks. Niort finished 16th in their first season back in Ligue 2, avoiding relegation by four points. The 2007–08 season was a mixed affair for both Konaté and Niort. Despite reaching the last 16 of the Coupe de France, the club performed poorly in the league and were eventually relegated on the final day of the season after conceding a 93rd-minute goal after a mistake by goalkeeper David Klein. Konaté scored the first of his two goals in three seasons for the club on 7 March 2008 in a 2–2 draw with SC Bastia. At the end of the season, because of the relegation Konaté was one of a number of players not offered a new deal by Niort, and he was released in July 2008. Back to Fontenay Konaté was given a trial at Polish Ekstraklasa side Legia Warszawa in August 2008, but he played poorly as the team lost 0–2 to Jagiellonia Białystok and was not awarded a contract. Konaté was unable to find a new club in the summer transfer window, and played the first few months of the season alongside other out-of-contract players with the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP). He had to wait until the January transfer window in 2009 to return to his former team, Fontenay-le-Comte. Konaté signed a six-month contract and made thirteen league appearances, scoring two goals, the first of which came in the 3–1 win over SO Châtellerault on 21 March 2009, as the side achieved a fourth-placed finish in the CFA Group C, missing out on promotion by twelve points. Return to Niort On 25 June 2009, Konaté returned to his recently relegated former club Chamois Niortais on a free transfer as one of a number of former players re-signed by the club as they aimed to return to the Championnat National at the first attempt. He played well in pre-season, scoring two goals in friendly matches, one each against SO Châtellerault and his former club, Vendée Fontenay Foot. The team went on to win promotion from the CFA at the end of the 2009–10 season, thereby returning to the third tier of French football. Two years later, Konaté was an integral part of the team that finished as runners-up